The Magic School Bus Honks Once More
by TheFreakyFanfictioner
Summary: Ms. Frizzle has caught up to the students, and now she's their middle school science teacher! She may be limited to fifty-two minutes, but that's not gonna stop her! She also has thrown her brother into the mix as Team Psi's History teacher! He's shy, but knows his stuff. Now the kids get double the magic! Watch as drama unfolds, refolds, and unfolds again!
1. The Magic School Bus Honks Once More

Tim Jamal sat in the class sketching the empty classroom before he checked his watch. It had been twenty minutes. He sighed and got up, collecting his things when Phoebe Terese hastily entered. "Tim? TIM!" She shouted before tripping into his arms. She stared up at him dreamily before realizing what had just happened and got off of him. "How's it going Pheebs?" He asked. She gave a thumbs down. "My last period teacher kept us twenty minutes late, which is why I'm late. Can you believe that I was in the same class as everyone in Ms. Frizzle's class fourteen years ago? But we all jumped out so fast we couldn't tell who was going to which class." Phoebe sadly sighed. Ralphie suddenly walked in. "Guys? It's you!" He shouted. "Ralphie!" Phoebe cried in happiness.

"Actually, I've matured a bit, Pheebs. I'd really prefer if you called me Ralph." He corrected her. "Ralph? What's next? College?" Dorothy Ann asked smugly entering the room. Carlos and Arnold next, followed by Keesha and Wanda. "Wait, are we the only ones here?" Carlos questioned. "Yeah, that's really weird." Wanda answered. "You know, my mom and I checked the roster this morning and there's only eight people in the class. Wait…" D.A. proceeded to count the people in the classroom. "There's eight of us here right now." She said. Te class looked around confused. Arnold began to act strange. "Um, I heard our science teacher quit and they found another on short notice. This seems a little familiar. And I passed a bus this morning, and I could have sworn it winked at me."

Suddenly, the model cell in the corner began to rattle before a woman in a dress flew out of it. She landed on the desk, her dress separated in two by a red ribbon. Her dress was orange, decorated in different cells and their insides. Her earrings were mitochondria and her red shoes had an animal cell on it. "Well, class, we meet again." She chuckled, tying her frizzy hair up into a bun. "MS. FRIZZLE?! The eight students shouted. "Uh, is it just me…or…" Ralph began. "It's not just you, Ralph, we've been frizzled again!" Tim answered. "Well, class, the high school contacted me because the previous science teacher moved to California. They knew I was popular in elementary school, so I packed my things, and moved here. And Liz couldn't bear to be away from me, so Phoebe, could you open your shirt, please?" Phoebe did as she was told and Liz hopped out. "Magic!" Ms. Frizzle announced.

"I also heard Team Psi has a new history teacher." D.A. answered. "Yes, that's my brother. Mr. Frizzle! He's just as magic as I am, but he chooses not to flaunt it. My sister and I also made him a new bus, so don't let him stop you from going on field trips!" She laughed. "Speaking of field trips, Ms. Frizzle," Keesha started. "Will we be going on them again?" She asked. "Of course, Keesha, only we'll be limited to fifty two minutes instead of the entire school day. But don't worry, you'll still enjoy it! Now, we don't have much time, so let's begin our first lesson! To the bus!" She announced, pointing to the door.


	2. The Magic School Bus Splits A Cell

The students ran out the classroom, Ms. Frizzle chasing them down. Arnold was the only straggler, but he still found himself climbing those familiar metallic stairs, sitting in that familiar leather chair, hearing that familiar voice from the front and buckling in that familiar seatbelt. "Class, it's so great to be with you again! I've got to be honest…you were my favorite class!" She admitted. The class, utterly shocked at her confession, muttered a silent thank you to her, but she didn't need to hear it. Being with them was enough thank you.

"Bus, do your stuff!" She ordered yanking down the lever at the front of the center aisle. The bus began shake before turning into a whirlwind and shrinking simultaneously. The tornado disappeared, and the bus was nowhere to be found…unless you had a microscope. The class had shrunk down to atomic size again, smaller than when they had to wash Molly's car. "Ms. Frizzle, where are we going?" Arnold cautiously asked. "Ah…curious as always." She reminisced. You'll see." She answered in a sing-song voice. The bus took off from the ground, nearly avoiding the atoms that were in its path. The students held on to the chairs as to not go flying every time Ms. Frizzle would make a sharp turn. The nearly invisible bus flew back into the school, just as the bell rang. Students began piling out of classrooms, some running, some walking, others talking, but Ms. Frizzle found a lonesome student on their own, reading a book. "Ah, perfect." She said to herself. She pressed a button, and two rockets appeared from hidden compartments in the bus' side.

She hit a button right next to it, and the bus lurched forward, launching itself straight to the person reading the book. Narrowly avoiding the passing students, the bus reached the girl and headed for her arm. Doing different maneuvers to avoid the arm hairs, Ms. Frizzle dove into one of the girl's pores. "What was that giant hole, Ms. Frizzle?" Tim asked. "That was a pore, Tim! It serves as a 'house' for arm hairs, and lets out the body's natural oils! We may learn about it later, but right now, we're almost at our destination!" The bus magically dove into the bloodstream and headed straight for a cell. "MS. FRIZZLE! MS. FRIZZLE! LOOK OUT!" The class shouted.

The bus kept going straight for it. The class prepared for impact. Ms. Frizzle got a glimmer in her eye, and a mischievous grin etched on her face. Her earrings began to glow and the bus flew into the cell and was suspended in the spot. "Well, look at that! We're here!" She announced. The class opened their eyes, moving their bodies from the cannonball shape they were previously in. All around them was a clear liquid, and different _things_ sitting in it. "Whoa…" Wanda said, standing up. "Where are we?" Keesha asked in awe. "Wait a minute…weren't we just headed straight for a cell? How did we get here?" Phoebe questioned.

Ralph gasped. "Are we…inside a cell?!"

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The class were in panic. "Why can't we move?!" Arnold shouted. "How are we in here?!" Carlos worriedly asked. "WE WERE GOING TO CRASH!" D.A. noted. "Class, we're inside a magic bus that can basically do anything, and you're questioning _that_?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "She's not wrong. So, we're in a cell. What do we do now?" Wanda asked. "We get out there and EXPLORE!" Ms. Frizzle exclaimed, now in a diver's suit that looked just like her dress. She yanked down on a tug on the roof of the bus. "Put these on, class."

After following her directions, Ms. Frizzle pressed a button and the doors of the bus opened, but the hole where you're supposed to enter and exit was filled with a green glow. "What's that for, Ms. Frizzle?" Keesha asked. "Well, Keesha, that goop out there is called cytoplasm, and it's just like hand sanitizer. You know those tiny balls in the sanitizer?" She asked. The students before her nodded. "Well, the stuff within it is suspended in the liquid. It's just like that with the cytoplasm. It holds everything together. That's why the bus couldn't move, Arnold." Arnold nodded. "The light makes it so you can move in the cytoplasm. How can you explore without being able to move?" She asked. "I guess that makes sense." Carlos said. "But be warned, class, this suspension-blocker lasts for so long: twenty minutes. So, make sure you get back in the bus before your time is up. Now, let's go!" Ms. Frizzle explained before diving into the cytoplasm.

"Come on you weasly wimps!" Wanda shouted before doing a cannon ball. She froggy swam over to Ms. Frizzle. "This is amazing! I learned this swim from Bella!"Wanda demonstrated her skills again. One by one, all the students were floating around the cytoplasm except for Arnold. "Uh-uh. I stay here. There is no way I am getting stuck in some random girl's cell." Ralph swam over to him. "Come on, Arn. We've got twenty minutes! Just get in here!" He ordered, dragging Arnold into the cytoplasm by the ankle. "NO!" Arnold shrieked. He fell in and began to sink to the bottom. "I can move…I CAN MOVE!" He happily cried swimming in a loop-de-loop. Tim was sketching the sight in front of him when he asked, "Ms. Frizzle, I'm confused. What are those things out there?" He asked. "Ah, excellent question, Tim. Those are organelles." She answered. "Organelles? As in organs?" Phoebe asked swimming up to her. "Dynamic deduction!" Ms. Frizzle exclaimed. "According to my research, each organelle has a job to do in the cell." She explained. "Right you are, D.A."Ms. Frizzle praised. "Everyone follow me!" Ms. Frizzle sang out.

The students followed her towards the center. "Class, does anyone know what this is?" She asked. No one said anything. "Well, maybe I can tell you. This is the nucleus. It's the center of the cell. It contains deoxyribonucleic acid." She explained. "Huh?" Arnold asked. "DNA." D.A. explained. "Anyone want to take a peek?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class eagerly nodded. Ms. Frizzle pressed the button on the right side of her mask. The class followed their example, and could now X-Ray the organelles. They looked into the nucleus, seeing tons of info bunched into a curving spiral that looked like a ladder.

"Class, the DNA is a spiral, and each different bar contains a different piece of information. That bar could be a disease or it could be a part of your muscle." Keesha pondered this. "So each cell has DNA in it?" She asked. Ms. Frizzle nodded. "Mhm." She agreed. "So does every cell in our body have DNA that creates a different part of our body?" "Exactly, Keesha, but we'll get back to that soon enough."

"HEY! Check this out!" Wanda called, looking at a tiny ball floating in the cell. "Class, those are ribosomes. They not only float around in the cell, but they stick to the rough endoplasmic reticulum." Ms. Frizzle explained, pointing to the rough endoplasmic reticulum. "Wait, why is it called the _rough_ endoplasmic reticulum?" Phoebe asked. "Look at that! It looks just like the rough endoplasmic reticulum, except it doesn't have any ribosomes on it!" Tim called out. "According to my research, that's the smooth endoplasmic reticulum!" D.A. noted. "Wait, why do the ribosomes stick to one endoplasmic reticulum instead of both? What does the rough ER have that the smooth ER doesn't have?"

"Purposes." Ms. Frizzle said swimming over. "What?" The class asked in unison. "The endoplasmic reticulums serve different purposes. The rough ER makes proteins and the ribosomes do the same thing. They turn ribonucleic acid into proteins, and the ribonucleic acid is what transports DNA. It is very important to the body just as the DNA is." The class understood. "Then what does the smooth endoplasmic reticulum do?" Arnold asked.

"Well, Arnold, it happens to be involved with the making and metabolism of fats." Suddenly, the bus honked twice, indicating it was time for them to come back. They only had five minutes left. "Come along everyone, it's time to get to the plants!" Carlos snickered. "Well, we better move quickly, before we get planted in here forever!"

"CARLOS!" The class groaned swimming. Ralph looked to his left, something catching his eye. "What's that?" He asked stopping. "Churros!" He shouted, swimming over. "Ms. Frizzle, did you stop in here earlier to drop off snacks?" He asked reaching for one. "Don't touch that, Ralph! Those aren't churros, they're centrioles!"

"So…..a fancier name for churros?" Ralph joked. "No, Ralph, they actually aid with cell division." D.A. explained. "In other words, they help split cells in two? Like when we were trying to figure out why Arnold turned orange?"Carlos asked, looking for confirmation. "Exactly." Ms. Frizzle nodded, glad they were interested. Phoebe leaned back onto something while the rest kept talking and then shouted as she fell into the folds of it. "HELP!" She shouted.

Keesha gripped her left leg while D.A. took her right and they yanked hard. He shoes came off. Then, they pulled her out by her ankles. "Ah, Phoebe, I see you've located the mitochondrion." Ms. Frizzle gleefully said. "Is that what I was in?" She asked. "Exactly. The mitochondria break down nutrients in the cell and use them to make energy. They are referred to as the 'powerhouse of the cell.'" Arnold pondered this. "I've heard that saying, but which one is it Ms. Frizzle? The mitochondrion or the mitochondria?"

"Both are correct, Arnold!" D.A. said. "Mitochondria for multiple, mitochondrion for one." She told him. "Now, class. There's one last thing I want to show you." Ms. Frizzle swam over to what looked like a Wi-Fi symbol. The bus rolled its eyes at the fact that they only had two minutes left. "Class, this is a Golgi complex. It takes different molecules and make them into different things. They are then sent to the-anyone?" She asked.

"Vesicles?" Tim asked. "Correct! They also make these-lysosomes!" Ms. Frizzle said pushing one over. "How did you know that?" Ralph asked. "I don't know. I've heard that word and cell in the same sentence, so…I put two and two together."

"At my old school, one of my classmates knew all about the cell and she told me that the lysosomes _digest_ other organelles!" Phoebe said. "Correct Phoebe, except, they digest _worn out_ organelles. The ones that don't work anymore." She explained. "Wow, there are so many parts to a cell! It's like they're their own person!" Carlos exclaimed excitedly. "Precisely." Ms. Frizzle said. Suddenly, the bus began honking madly, growing extremely worried. And then, nearly everyone began to glow green, and then couldn't move. "Oh, dear. It appears we've run out of time and have been suspended in the cytoplasm." Ms. Frizzle said, seeming not worried. "Wait…WE'RE STUCK?!" Wada screamed. Ms. Frizzle tried to nod, but couldn't. "Mhm." She said. "Looks like we'll be here for a while." She said

-|o|=|=|o|-

The group tried to move but were having no avail. "Looks like we're in a sticky situation!" Carlos joked. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. "WHAT DO WE DO?!" Wanda shrieked. "I don't know, but I think it's best if I get out of here while I can!" Arnold began to swim away from the group and toward the bus. "ARNOLD!?" Wanda cried. "ARNOLD GET US OUT OF HERE!" She screamed. The bus honked, alerting Arnold he had one minute left. Arnold swam even faster and just barely grazed the glowing light. He made it in just in time and landed in the bus. "Oh, wow."He said, bringing his hand to his head, groaning. "ARNOLD, I'M GETTING A CRAMP! HURRY UP!" Wanda yelled. Arnold looked at the dashboard in confusion. "Er…." He pressed a button. The bus tried to wiggle, but couldn't so in a flash of light, the bus' metal began to retract into a slicker body, turning into a tail fin. The front curve sharper and grew teeth. The interior grew sharper and seemed angrier.

The bus had turned into a shark. "ARNOLD, UNLESS THAT SHARK CAN HELP US, I SUGGEST YOU DO SOMETHING!" Arnold got defensive and pressed the button he had seen Ms. Frizzle press earlier, but then pulled the lever to see what would happen. The bus was surrounded in a green glow and began to swim over to the students. "Jeez, Wanda, are you on your period? Chill out." He asked, opening the bus door. He pulled her in first, and when she was back to normal, she slapped him and sat in the back, buckling herself in.

Arnold went around the cell collecting his classmates and saved Ms. Frizzle for last. "Excellent work, Arnold." She praised. But then she leaned in and whispered in his ear, "But you should really apologize. That type of comment can aggravate a woman very quickly." She explained. Standing up, she asked, "Bus, how much time do we have left?" A clock popped out of a compartment, revealing that they had ten minutes left. "Well, class, I think we have time to visit another cell!" Ms. Frizzle announced. "What?" The class asked in unison. "We're still in one, why do we need to go to another one?" D.A. said. "We know what it's like in a cell." Carlos added, sneaking his hand towards hers.

"Well, we've seen an animal cell, but you haven't seen a plant cell! Seatbelts, everyone!" She said, taking the front seat. Clicks came from all directions, as Ms. Frizzle pressed a button. The bus began spinning and returned to normal. It bounced out of the cell and stopped to turn around. "Class, the final thing I have to tell you about an animal cell is that it has a cell membrane that protects the cell and it regulates what goes in and out. Now, to the plant!" She announced. The bus flew out of the bloodstream, and through a pore in the leg. "Whoa! We've been in the bloodstream for so long we made it to the leg!" Ralph told them, shocked. "Actually, we've been in the leg more than 800 times."Ms. Frizzle told them.

"What?!" They asked. "Mhm, the cell can go around the entire body in twenty seconds. We just happened to leave her body at the time." Ms. Frizzle turned the bus into an average housefly and flew out the window. "Here we go!" Ms. Frizzle said, diving for the grass. The housefly bus began to whirl until it dug into the soil. It turned into an all terrain jeep and drove over the boulders of soul and through the waters from the rain of the night before.

It shrunk even more and went up through the roots up the stem. Ms. Frizzle was in a rush. She shrunk the bus even more and they flew into a leaf. "Whoa!" The class cried out. "It looks just like the animal cell!" Carlos said going straight through the glow and into the plant cell. "Hey, are those the chloroplasts?" He asked. Ms. Frizzle nodded as Keesha was the last one to join the group in the cytoplasm. "So are chloroplasts a part of plant cells?" She asked. "Exactly! Plant cells are nearly the same as animal cells, except they have chloroplasts, a cell wall and—"

"WHOA!" Tim cried as he fell into a squishy blob. "What is this, Ms. Frizzle?" Tim asked as he sunk into it. "Ah, Tim, I see you have found the large central vacuole!" The class faced her, confused. "What's the large central vacuole?" Phoebe asked. "You see, class, when we got suspended, I didn't have the chance to tell you about the vacuole. There are plenty of them, and they collect water and nutrients, but in the plant, there is one giant one! It holds mostly water, since uses water for making food."

The class was amazed and asked her to continue. "I wish we continue this field trip, but I have to get you to your next period. Tomorrow, we'll see the bacterial cells. But, I hope you enjoy my brother's class. Come along everyone!" The students begrudgingly headed back to the bus and piled on. Ms. Frizzle started the bus and turned it into a housefly again. She flew into the school and it turned into a whirlwind. Ms. Frizzle punched in each students' next period and dropped off the students and their stuff outside their classroom. Then and flew into Ms. Frizzle's classroom, still as a tornado and dropped both her and Liz in the room before spinning out the open window and stopped as its original form as if it had never left.

"Well, this will be a different year, but I'll love it! Won't you, Liz?"

All around the world, phones were ringing.

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer answered. "Yes, this is the producer speaking. How's it going?" He asked. "Horribly, Carlos barely made jokes!" The kid on the other end answered. "Well, yes, but Carlos has grown a bit, but he still has a love for it. Anything else?"

"Yeah, I have to tell you forgot some different things." The kid told him. "Oh yeah? Go ahead and tell me." He said. "Well, for example, if a cell has too much water in it, it can expand and explode, but if it has too little it can shrivel up and die!" The kid said. "True, true, but the body and cell knows what to do, and tries its hardest to regulate the cell." The producer explained.

"Yes but you also forgot to explain tissue." The kid said. "Ah, yes, living tissue. Do you know what that is?" The producer asked. "Well…no...I was hoping _you_ could explain it?" The kid asked. "Of course, cells bond together, don't they? And when they do, that's when they turn into living tissue. The tissue then bonds together and creates an organ like the stomach." He told the child. "Oh, now I get it! Thanks for the explanation, Mr. Producer." He said. "Anytime, kid, anytime." He responded pressing the End Call button. Then he stepped into a jelly filled ball and shouted, "I'M IN THE CYTOPLASM!" Liz, that was watching the whole thing in secret laughed at him. He then noticed Liz and grew embarrassed and shouted at her to stop laughing.


	3. The Magic School Bus Meets the Greek God

**Okay, so I ran out of space in the title so it's not the title, it's actually "The Magic School Bus Meets the Greek Gods PART 1" Tanks for your cooperation!**

Finally. Eighth period. The class they had been waiting for. History. The students that were previously scattered about the school joined together again and sat in their seats eagerly awaiting the dramatic entrance the Frizzle family usually wowed them with. "Huh, that's weird. Ms. Frizzle would have had a grand entrance by now." Carlos wondered aloud. "Well, Carlos, remember what she said, this is her brother and he's on the shyer side. I think we're his very first class." Suddenly they heard the doorknob jiggle and they stared at the door.

The man standing there practiced different ways to enter for about two minutes and then finally walked in. "Alright, take your seats now!" He ordered. He then tripped and hit his head on the desk. "Ouch!" The class winced. He stood up acting as if nothing had happened. "Hi." He said. He stood before them, like an awkward turtle. His suit seemed more casual than their other teachers. But, it was still over the top. He wore a shirt with a collar and a blazer over that, the collar poking over the blazer. Decorated on the shirt and blazer was a rain storm

The top of the blazer and shirt was a dark storm cloud and ran droplets fell on the front and sleeves of his blazer and shirt. But on the back, a single lightning bolt touched the water. Yes, the water. On his pants, just below his crotch, as a large wave and underneath it was a single silver fish with purple fins swimming around. The pants got darker as you went farther down until you caught sight of the fire. Yes the fire. H bottom of the pant sleeve was decorated in a blazing fire, and his socks and shoes were black. On his left wrist lay a white wristwatch with a triangle on it. Etched in it were three symbols. A lightning bolt on top, a raindrop on the bottom left, and a fire on the bottom right. Those same three symbols were on his white collar, just as pins. They seemed to glow every once and a while.

His hair was messy and the slightest bit frizzy. You could see he tried to fix it but gave up. His eyes were vibrant green, seemingly very eager, but were soft that made him seem like a lost puppy. His nose had an arch, much like his sister, and surrounding his full lips was a slight goatee of red hair, just a stubble. He seemed nervous, and the students couldn't blame him, but also couldn't help but laugh at his pathetic nature.

"Hey, there, I'm Anthony Frizzle, but you can call me Anthony. I'm not one for formal speech." He said with a grin. "Listen, I didn't want to dress up like this, but Valerie made me. She also got me this job, and I guess I should be thankful. I was a university professor and I hated it. I'd much rather teach you guys." He confessed moving his left hand to the back of his neck.

Ralph raised his hand but Anthony had him put it down. "I know what you're going to ask. 'Will we be going on magic field trips like we did with the Friz?' Well, no. To be honest, no. It's not like I don't want to, but Valerie's field trips are _not_ state approved. And I need this job, or else I go back to the university. Plus, it's not like I have my own magic bus. Valerie, Fiona, and I made that bus for a competition and our parents decided it was theirs to keep. Then when we got older, they gave it to Valerie since she's the oldest, and then passed it down to Fiona, and now that the Friz is back to teaching, I can't really-well, you know… _borrow_ it. Anyway, I got way off course. Valerie told me everything there is to know about you…well, she mainly covered the basics, so I'm looking forward to discovering you. But on with the first lesson: Greek lifestyles and mythology." He announced.

Arnold squealed. As Anthony handed out the textbooks and tablets to take notes with, he asked, "Arnold? Are you alright?" Arnold squealed again. "It's just…I LOVE GREEK LIFESTYLES AND MYTHOLOGY! It's the best thing to learn about! I can name every Greek god and demigod in alphabetical order right now, and judging by your outfit, I can tell we're going to be learning about Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades! The three strongest Greek gods!"

Anthony looked impressed. "Why, I'm impressed, Arnold." He praised, standing straight up. "Thank you, Mr. Anthony." He said. "Oh, no, just call me Anthony." He corrected. "No, sorry, but I can't handle calling a teacher by their first name, so is it alright if we just call you Mr. Anthony?" Arnold asked. Anthony pondered for a moment and nodded. "Sure, why not? But if you'd like, you can call me Anthony, too. It's your preference." He said, placing Phoebe's tablet on her desk. "Okay, everyone, please open your textbooks to page 112 and we can get started." He ordered walking up to the chalkboard. Phoebe raised her hand. "Um, Mr. Anthony?" She asked. He turned to face her after writing "HADES" on the board. "Yes, Phoebe?" he answered.

"I don't think I like this learning style." She said. "What's wrong with it?" He asked. "It's just…I want to go on a field trip she answered. "Ms. Frizzle hyped you up to us, so I was hoping we'd get to do something or see something extraordinary." She added. "Oh, don't worry, Hun, we'll be going on field trips." He assured her. "Really?" She asked, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Sure, as soon as we finish Chapters 8, 9, and 10, I was thinking we could head to the museum downtown. A state approved field trip." He said. Phoebe's smile faded. "Mr. Frizzle—I mean, Mr. Anthony—Phoebe means that she wants to go on a magical field trip. Like, back in time, or shrinking. That sort of stuff." Keesha explained, standing.

"Keesha, I get your point, I really do, but I don't have a magic bus for that." He said. "Yes you do!" Ralph corrected him. "What?" Anthony asked, utterly confused. "Ms. Frizzle made you a new one so you could go on field trips! And she told us not to let you talk us out of it!" D.A. said. "It's outside right now!" She added. Carlos tossed him the keys, which he caught. "To the bus!" Carlos ordered, running out the door. The other students soon followed. "No, wait!" He called out. Arnold stopped in the doorway and faced him. "Look, here, Mr. Anthony." He began. "I've wanted this field trip for a long time, and the others are really into the idea of a magic field trip for History class. Please don't deny us of an interesting education. But if you do, I guess I'll understand. I'll just be disappointed."

Arnold then left, leaving Anthony to ponder this for a moment. Then, he grabbed his satchel.

Outside the students surrounded the new bus. "Wow, look at it!" Keesha said. "It's a piece of art." Tim complimented, sketching it. The bus had the same personality as Anthony, shy. It seemed frightened, so the students approached it cautiously. "Hi, bus." Wanda softly greeted it. "I'm Wanda, and these are my friends. We just want to be friends with you. We won't hurt you, promise!" She told it. The bus let out a soft sigh, seeming relieved. Wanda looked back at the others in approval. "Can you believe it, Arnold?" Phoebe asked as he joined the group outside. "A field trip for History class!" She excitedly said. Arnold lowered his head. "We might not go on it. I just talked to Mr. Anthony and he—IS STANDING ONTHE WINDOW SILL!" Arnold alarmingly shouted. The class, and the bus, faced him in horror. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, MR. ANTHONY?!" Keesha asked. He didn't answer. Instead, he chucked the bus' keys to the ground and nose dived off the sill.

He caught up to them quickly and grasped them before doing a flip and doing a barrel roll next to the bus. He placed his left hand on his hip, let all the weight fall to one knee, and extended his arm with the keys to the bus. He pressed a button on them and the bus' doors opened. Everyone stared at him in shock, frozen, paralyzed in time. Well, except for Tim who was vigorously drawing the scene in front of him into a comic strip. "Well, what are you waiting for?" He asked. "Do you want to go on a field trip or not?" The class cheered and piled in. Tim finished the final panel and showed Anthony what he drew. "Nice skills, Tim. I'm impressed." He said, giving a thumbs up. Tim boarded the bus and sat next to Phoebe in the middle row.

Anthony got on and stood in the center aisle. "Class, I hope you'll enjoy this, because depending on what happens on this field trip it may be the first and final magical field trip you ever have." He warned seriously. Suddenly, a squirrel wandered on, causing a ruckus and panic. Anthony shut the bus' doors and checked his keys. There was a button with the outline of an animal and a brain on the head. He aimed at the squirrel and blasted it. The rodent was suddenly calm, tame, and hopped onto his shoulders. "Well, look at that, class." He said, petting the squirrel. "We've got ourselves a rodent as out class pet. What should we name him?"

"How about…Chipper?" Wanda suggested. "I like it, but it seems like too much. How about just Chip?" He suggested. The class nodded in agreement and Anthony grinned, petting Chip. "Well class, do I seem like Ms. Frizzle?" He asked. "No." D.A. said. "You seem like the perfect Mr. Frizzle, and I think I like that better than Anthony." The class let out different agreeing statements. "Guess I've been outvoted." He shrugged. "Seatbelts everyone!" He ordered, hopping into the driver's seat. The class buckled in, the clicks sounding like music to their ears. Arnold bounced eagerly in his seat, impatient to get going. Then, Mr. Frizzle put the key in and turned it. And then drove off of the school grounds. "Hey, what's going on?" Ralph asked. "Yeah, what gives?" Arnold agreed pouting. "Well class, as my three hundred million, eight hundred and twenty six thousand, four hundred and twenty fourth cousin used to say, 'To get to the past, you got to get there fast, but in the spot where it happened.'" He copied his cousin's voice by making his voice raspy, but holding his nose. He looked at the dashboard. "Valerie, how'd you remember?" He asked. On the dashboard, instead of there being buttons, there was a screen with an input board. Mr. Frizzle typed in "rocket boosters" and pressed send. An arrow on the screen pointed to the glowing lever and he pulled on it.

Two rockets escaped from the hidden compartments and blasted them faster. The bus lurched forward, sending everyone's bodies backward. Chip held onto the lever for dear life, before losing his grip and was sent flying to the back door. He stuck to it like he was a balloon stuck to hair and couldn't move no matter how hard he tried. Mr. Frizzle chuckled before calling out, "YA-HOOO!" The class looked at each other before chuckling. Then, he took a sharp left and came into a big, wide clearing.

In front of them was a cliff. "Uh, Mr. Frizzle!" Arnold shouted. "Yes, Arnold?" He asked. "WE'RE HEADING STRAIGHT FOR A CLIFF!" He shouted as the bus neared it, faster and faster.

-|o|=|=|o|-

The bus got closer and closer before Mr. Frizzle punched in "time travel." Another screen below the first one lit up. It was a time line. Mr. Frizzle moved the bar back to the storm cloud. As he stopped the bar, the storm cloud let out a lightning bolt. He sent the message to the bus. The lever began to glow again, and Mr. Frizzle pulled again. The bus began to wiggle and lurch in different directions before spinning and falling off the cliff towards the sharp rocks below. "NO! NO!" The class screamed. Suddenly, a bright blue glow surrounded the spinning bus, and little dots of golden sparkles floated out of it. Then, the light and sparkles flashed away from the bus and into the rest of the world. The light surrounded the globe, sending the students back in time. As soon as the light faded, the bus began to slow down before it plopped on flat land. "We're here!" Mr. Frizzle sang out. The class opened their eyes and looked around them. They were in a crop field.

"Did we go back in time again?" Wanda asked standing up and shuffling past D.A. to look out the window. She couldn't see over the grass. "Sorry about the view class, but I had to keep the bus hidden until I had time to transform it. I mean, we can't just go out there in the open like this, can we?" He chuckled and punched in another command. The glowing lever was pulled and the bus began to spin again. When it stopped, the students and their teacher were now sitting in a wagon with a glass dome around their head. The wagon was made of wood the same as the rear wheel. The bus had transformed into a stallion with chains in between its front bumper and the reins retracted to the front of the wagon. Mr. Frizzle pressed on the gas pedal, but his shoes had now to turned to ancient sandals. His clothes were now a one strap toga. The class, still with their respective styles had togas on now. The only difference between the class and Mr. Frizzle was now he had a golden leaf crown on his head. The bus galloped away from the field and towards town. "Now, to start, we'll begin with the standard Greek diet. Anyone know what that is? Or was? Or is?" He asked. No one answered, but Arnold had his hand raised high. "Well, I suppose I could pick you, Arnold…" He began. Arnold gasped and stood up, and opened his mouth to begin speaking but as cut off. "But you wanted a magical experience? And where's the fun in having someone tell you? How about I _show_ you?" He suggested. The class cheered, but Arnold slumped. "Man, I wanted to explain it." He said.

Mr. Frizzle was somewhat of a pushover and felt remorse for Arnold. "Well, I guess you can." He began. Arnold expressed his gladness too soon. Mr. Frizzle typed in "shrink & return to previous state of transformation." The lever began to glow again, and Mr. Frizzle got a twinkle in his eye. The pins attached to his toga began to glow. "Would you like to do the honors, Chip?" The squirrel nodded and hopped onto the dashboard. He jumped on top of the ball and the bus began to whirl again.

It returned to bus size and flew over the fields and into a nearby house where a young girl stood up from her chair. She was not prepared for what was going to happen next, and neither were the students. The girl inhaled deeply and the bus shot up her nose and towards her mouth. Mr. Frizzle shrunk the bus again and slid underneath the flap in the windpipe. The bus went down the esophagus. "Class, does anyone know what that is?" He asked pointing in front of him. "It looks like…an olive." Keesha noted. "Exactly! Class, I want you to put these on." He said, pulling on the lever again. Swimming gear fell down from the ceiling and above the students. "You want us to go swimming in the stomach acid? But we'll melt!" Arnold cried. "Nope. I've modified these suits so that they can withstand anything." The bus fell through the valve in the stomach and Mr. Frizzle opened the door, magically in his suit and did a perfect 10/10 dive into the acid.

The students, after putting on their suits jumped in, except for Arnold who was pushed by Wanda. Not only did she want him to keep moving, but she wanted to physically harm him. It didn't work. "Alright, class! Go and look for different types of food in here!" Carlos, doing the backstroke, bumped into something and faced it. "Well, this is a pretty _cheesy_ turn of events. I think this is pretty cliché" He joked. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. "Hey, calm down, people." He added, and then pointed to a creamy white substance floating around next to it. "At least you don't have to _milk_ me for puns!"

"Well, Carlos, I appreciate your educational puns! As you'll see later, class, the Greeks held onto goats for things like milk and cheese!" Ralph floated over sitting cross—legged on a bit of digested bread. "I found some dough to settle with." He said jokingly. "RALPH!" The class groaned.

It's true, class, the Greeks did enjoy some of the foods that we have today, and if you look close enough, you'll find something that you wouldn't expect." He hinted. Arnold was floating on his back when his head sunk into something squishy. "HELP!" He cried, his alarm muffled. He let go of his helmet and fell back into the acid. He took a chunk of it and tasted it. "Hey, this tastes like cake!" He concluded. Mr. Frizzle swam over. "Precisely, Arnold. The Greeks also chowed down on cake, something that nobody ever guesses. Back to the bus, everyone!"

The bus chugged over and opened its doors, the class hopping in and sitting down and buckling in. Arnold sat down next to Wanda who ignored him. Arnold sighed, trying to break ground. "Look,Wanda, I—"

"Alright, class, let's fly on out of here!"He announced. He punched something in and pulled the lever. The bus floated out of the acid and up through the valve connecting the esophagus and continued out of her throat. Mr. Frizzle directed the bus through her mouth and punched in another order. The bus began to spin and returned to the previous state of transformation. Wanda tugged at her toga. "Ugh, why is this so irritating?" She complained, messing with the strap. "Did the Greeks even wear these? I haven't seen any of them wearing these!" She grossly grumbled. "Well, kind of, Wanda. You see, the Greeks did wear togas, but originally, they belonged to the Romans. The Greeks actually wear cloaks called a hitmation. It technically is canon they wore togas, but most of them chose not to." He explained. "Now, I don't think you'd like it if we stayed all cooped up in the bus all throughout the field trip, so get out there and LEARN!" He ordered, opening the bus doors.

The class chuckled, remembering Ms. Frizzle's old motto. "What? What's so funny?" He asked, stepping off. Tim noticed a teenage girl walking by, and took a great liking to her. "Hey, isn't that the girl we just left?" He asked. Mr. Frizzle nodded. Tim looked again, his eyelids lowering and his heart pounding. The girl noticed him too, and blushed, removing a strand of hair from her eye and behind her ear. Tim began to strut over to her, but Mr. Frizzle grabbed him. "NO!" He shouted. The girl, now stricken with fear, ran away.

"What gives, Mr. Frizzle? I was going to talk to her!" Tim questioned angrily. "Tim, we can't alter the past. If we happen to do something that even slightly alters the past, it will affect the present. Remember when Arnold left that footprint? It left behind a disease that no one could prevent, so Valerie and I went back to get rid of it. If you make her fall in love with you now, or possibly…get her _pregnant_ …it'll change something in the future. Maybe Arnold will cease to exist!" He warned.

Arnold gasped and hid behind Carlos who rolled his eyes. Tim grew offended. "What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, defensively putting his hands on his hips. "Nothing, Tim!" He responded placing his arms next to his face. "I was just saying…"

Suddenly, Mr. Frizzle noticed that they were one student short and grew worried. "Okay, we're missing a student! Nobody panic! Arnold, Ralph, Keesha, Phoebe, Carlos, Tim, and Wanda." He counted aloud. "Where's Dorothy Ann?!" Wanda worriedly asked. "Did she go off on her own?!" Phoebe asked in fear. "Oh, no! What if she does something to rid me of my existence? I don't want to cease to exist!" Arnold shouted. The class panicked and began running around without any sense of where they were going. "CLASS! COME BACK HERE!" Mr. Frizzle ordered. No one listened. They were all running off to find D.A.

Mr. Frizzle grew soft and nervous again, the world growing odd around him. He fell to his knees and buried his head in his hands."I knew I couldn't do it…" He whispered to himself.


	4. The Magic School Bus Greek Gods Pt 2

Mr. Frizzle sat alone, in the darkness that surrounded him, not knowing what the right thing to do in that moment would be. His anxiety began to kick in, and his breathing hitched. Suddenly, a hand gripped his shoulder firmly. "It's okay, Mr. Frizzle. Breathe. Deep." The voice commanded soothingly. Mr. Frizzle took deep breaths as he was instructed, and stood up, slowly.

He turned around to come face to face with

"Arnold?"

"Hi, Mr. Frizzle."

"I thought you were searching for Dorothy Ann with the others."

"I wanted to check on you. You seemed a little…on edge."

The student played with his fingers in nervousness and shifted his weight from each foot every now and then. "I can't do it." Mr. Frizzle finally breathed out.

"What?"

"Can't you hear, Arnold? I said I can't do it! I've always had anxiety since I was a child, and I knew something horrifying would happen once I used magic. You don't think Valerie told the other classes to tell me? I tried to avoid it as much as possible, but your classmates kept…insisting, and were rambunctious. I couldn't say no to a group of students looking for a good taste of what it was like back then. Or now…I lost control of myself…started acting reckless, like my sisters. I knew I couldn't handle this job."

Arnold shook his head. "No, you've got it all wrong, Mr. Frizzle. Sure, you have anxiety, and yeah—it fucking sucks, but we can get past this. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have been exciting and passionate about the lesson! If it weren't for you, we wouldn't know as much as we do now! You took us into the digestive system of a random girl from the Greek ages to learn about the types of food they eat! Even _I_ didn't know that stuff. Mr. Frizzle, can't you see? You're instilling an education that will last a lifetime. I believe in you, they believe in you, the Friz believes in you. The only person stopping you is yourself. So stop acting like you're a complete failure and go find that missing student! Tel tat voice in your head that you are in control! Tell that voice in your head that you _will_ succeed! Tell that voice in your head that you have no effect on me, and I will not let you tear me down!"

The stunned teacher, first by his swear word, but then by his inspiring speech had gained a new sense of confidence and realized Arnold was right. "I get you now, Arnold. I'm not going to back down." He said, holding out his hand for a handshake. Arnold was skeptical, but firmly shook his hand. Mr. Frizzle punched in another order to the pad.

"LOCATE DOROTHY ANN AND BRING STUDENTS INTO THE BUS WITH THE NABBER GRABBER." He sent it to the bus and pulled on the glowing lever. The screen below the keypad lit up as it began to pinpoint D.A.'s location. From the head of the stallion-bus out front, a claw escaped and picked up the students one by one. The dome retracted and let the students fall into their seats. Once all that was said and done, Mr. Frizzle stood at the front. "I made a mistake today." He admitted. "Yeah, forgetting D.A.!" Keesha shouted. "That too. But I didn't trust myself. I hope that what you take from this lesson, not even the material I'm teaching you, but I truly hope that you'll never second guess yourself, but instead trust your instincts. I should have done that from the start. I'm sorry." He let his head bow to the students before brightening up and cheering, "We've found D.A.! We're going back to the stomach everyone! Let's take the quick way there!" He announced, now in the front seat.

"Chip? Could you be so kind?" He asked. The squirrel saluted before punching in a request and pulling the lever.

"TRANSPORT BUS BACK INTO STOMACH WHERE D.A. IS LOCATED"

The bus vanished in a puff of magic dust and landed back in the stomach acid. It splashed onto D.A.'s head piece and she freaked out. "HEY! WATCH IT!" D.A. angrily spat at him. "I have, in fact, and the movie was kind of a letdown, but let's not talk about movies. Let's talk about heading back to school. There's more to show you that cannot be found here. The dome retracted and D.A. climbed in hastily to avoid any possible acid accidents. Her suit had kept her protected for a while, but she knew she didn't have long before the acid ate right through the material and through her body.

"I don't know if I got my point across," began Mr. Frizzle as he punched in an order, "but those suits are acid proof. They have a lifelong last and no type of acid can eat through it. You would have been fine D.A. As my sister once said, 'Some things are too tough to be broken up and dissolved!'" He chuckled before pulling the lever. The bus began to wiggle before whirling into a tornado. It escaped through the girl's mouth again and back into the large field. The bus stopped spinning, and there lay the bus. Everyone on the inside was back to their normal clothes, confused. "I don't get it. Shouldn't we be disguised?" Phoebe asked. "In this grass, Phoebe, we _are_ disguised!"

Another order changed the bus' color from yellow to bright green in a matter of seconds. The bus drove along, past the different crops that surrounded them. The bus came to a stop and Mr. Frizzle pointed ahead. "Anyone wonder what he's writing?" He asked. "I am now." Ralph answered. "Well, why don't we shoot back to the present and see for ourselves?" He suggested before punching in another command. The blue glow and golden sparkles returned only, this time, they had switched, so now it was a golden glow with blue sparkles. "Class, you may want to cover your eyes! This flash is blinding!" Mr. Frizzle warned. As Carlos shielded his eyes he joked, "Well, this should be an enlightening experience!" The class groaned his name as the flash left the bus and surrounded the glob again, sending them flying through time and back to the present day.

"Open your eyes, class." Mr. Frizzle told them. They followed his directions and stared ahead. "Are we back in present time?" Arnold asked. Mr. Frizzle looked back and nodded. "Mhm." He confirmed, opening the bus' doors. "Come with me, everyone." The class followed him out the doors to the rock in front of them. The bus had returned to normal, ad was now taking a little rest from the exhausting adventure. "Taking a _brake_ , Bus?" Carlos joked again. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. "Class, look at this rock. See anything familiar?" He asked.

"Hey, aren't those the scribes the man here was writing?" Tim noted. "Absolutely. These writings are called hieroglyphics." Mr. Frizzle explained. "Hieroglyphics." Wanda though aloud. Arnold shyly walked up to her and complimented "Your voice sounds beautiful when you say that." She scoffed and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms, turning away from him and towards Keesha. "But what's the purpose of these hiero-whatchamacalits? What do they have to do with the Greeks?" Carlos asked, feeling a grave in the rock.

"According to my research, the hieroglyphics were before letters were invented." D.A. said. "So is that what the hieroglyphics are?" Wanda asked. "Some form of type one alphabet?" Mr. Frizzle threw his hands up in the air in praise. "Exactly, class! The Greeks used hieroglyphics to tell stories and write random things down. But when historians looked at them closely, they found different things that altered the way we live today."

The class stared and smiled at the writings in the wall. "This is pretty cool!" Carlos said. "I wonder what those words mean." Ralph added. "Well why don't we be what we see?" Mr. Frizzle suggested, chuckling at his rhyme. "Hit it, Chip!" He called. The squirrel in the driver's seat pulled on the lever and the bus' eyes blasted the class with some sort of light that sucked them into the rock. "Whoa! I can't believe it!" Keesha shockingly remarked. "We're actually inside a rock!" Tim said. "It's dark in here." Wanda complained. "And something squishy is touching me!" Mr. Frizzle walked around, no idea where he was going. "Well, let me shed some light on your predicament. He tapped both his shoulders twice with his index and middle fingers and the lightning bolt on the back of his suit lit up.

To her surprise, Wanda was pressed up against Arnold. "Hehe...Hi Wan." Wanda smacked him before walking in the opposite direction, towards the indents. She bumped into one and suddenly, something flashed before her. She stumbled backwards, shocked. Arnold and Phoebe caught her. "You alright, Wanda?" Phoebe asked. "I'm good, but something weird just happened." She said.

"We went back in time and into a stomach two times, came back forward in time, are now inside a rock and you're calling whatever just happened to you weird?" Keesha asked. "What happened, Wan?" Carlos asked. "I don't know, it's just…" She walked up to the indent she had previously bumped into and reached for it. As soon as he fingers grazed it, the only thing she could see was the letter "E." She pulled back immediately. "E." She muttered. "What?" Keesha asked. "E. I could see nothing but E." Wanda explained to her confused classmates. She touched it again, but this time she disintegrated into the rock. "WHOA!" Wanda cried. "I can see the outside world!" She exclaimed.

Chip punched something into the bus and another light shone on the rock. Wanda's sign changed from a picture to the letter E. "Alright, class, who wants to decipher the secret message?" He asked. Everyone raised their hand. "Well, it's time to hit the letters!" He said pointing to the indents. "Get it?" He asked as the students disintegrated into the symbols. Mr. Frizzle hopped into the final symbol and yelled out, "HIT IT, CHIP!" The bright light blinded the students, but changed them into letters. "Chip, procedure 88329!" The squirrel saluted again and took a snapshot of the hieroglyphics changed letters with the bus' windows and showed it to the students. "'THE GREEK GODS WILL REIGN SUPREME'?" Tim asked.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Arnold asked. "Well, class, we'll have to find that out. Everybody, move out of your symbol!" The teacher said, moving out. The students followed his example, and the class began to disintegrate and then integrate back into their forms as humans outside of the rock again. "Well, how do we do that?" D.A. asked. "THE SUPPOSE—A—TRON!" Mr. Frizzle exclaimed hopping onto the bus to enter a command. He pulled the lever and the bus began to spin again, before stopping, still looking like a bus on the outside.

The students piled on again. "Wow! It's just like the one from when we were in Ms. Frizzle's class!" D.A. said. "Except, we have nothing to hypothesize." Carlos pondered aloud. "Yes, we do, Carlos! We can hypothesize about what life would have been like with the Greek Gods being around, except we don't have anything to test. So, anyone want to put in some different Greek gods to learn about? Arnold?" He suggested.

Arnold squealed and entered three names.

"POSEIDON."

"ZEUS."

"HADES."  
"Who are they?" Phoebe asked. "Well, why don't we find out? This suppose—a—tron makes a lifestyle similar to back then, only with what we're trying to figure out. So, let's go!" He said, jumping into the screen. The students looked around before jumping in together. "Ya-hoo!" Mr. Frizzle shouted going through the portal into the hypothesized world. "WHOA!" The class shrieked, flying down with him.

They landed in the world, the class stumbling over each other, Mr. Frizzle landing on his feet. "Well, class, let's take a look at what it would have been like with the Greek gods around!" Mr. Frizzle waved for them to follow him as they entered the virtual timeline they were just in. "I don't get it." Carlos said. "Everything looks the same, except there are a lot less people." He said. He was right. "Well, Carlos, the Greek gods were the explanation for science back then, although they never existed."

"But how does that affect all of this?" Keesha asked. "Where did all the people go?" Mr. Frizzle chuckled. "Quests, Keesha." He answered. "What?" She asked. "According to my research, the Greek gods had different quests for different people and if they had actually existed not many people would be around." D.A. explained. "That's right, D.A. Anybody know what that could affect? Heads." He said, pointing behind them. The class looked behind them, and found the crops they were once hiding in were missing, and dead crops and dead plants lay in their place. "Agriculture?" Phoebe suggested. "That's right Phoebe!" Arnold raised his hand. "Wait, Mr. Frizzle. Wouldn't Demeter keep restocking the agriculture?" He asked.

"Possibly, but since she had to keep watch of Persephone, it may take up too much time and keep her from caring for her part of the world." Suddenly, a rushing water sound came from their left, and they whipped their heads towards the racket. "FLOOD!" Carlos shouted. "To the bus, kids! Two by two, please." He ordered. The class rushed onto the bus seats and Mr. Frizzle picked up Chip and stepped onto the bus. "Why do these seats hurt, Mr. Frizzle?" Keesha asked, rubbing her butt. "You see, Keesha, this bus is pixelated." Mr. Frizzle explained, punching in an order and pulling the lever. The class just realized as the bus began to spin and turned into a submarine as the water washed over them. The interior began to shake wildly, and the students balled up in protection. "Hold on to your hats, class! I'm looking at you, Ralph. HERE WE GO! YA-HOO!" Mr. Frizzle shouted.

The bus nosedived down, now that they had reached the ocean. "Where are we going?" Ralph asked, now in a diving suit, as was the rest of the class. "To the angry god himself. Poseidon's palace. You know, it's great to have extended family in the Greek god business." Mr. Frizzle subtly gloated. "You're related to the Greek gods? You said they don't exist!" Keesha said. "Oh, did I?" Mr. Frizzle smugly inquired. He directed the bus further downward, farther than the deepest zone that scientists could reach. "Where are we? It's so dark I can't see." Wanda complained. Arnold used this time to hold her hand. She punched him, and he yelped in pain, pulling his hand away.

"Well, class, as my superhero friend, Bright Eye, used to tell me, 'If there's no light around, flip a switch, and you'll be found!'" Mr. Frizzle did an imitation of a cheesy superhero voice, before punching in another order and surrounding the bus in a swirl of light. "WHOA!" Carlos shouted. "It's—it's—"

"The Lost City of Atlantis? Yep. You know, it's kind of obvious he lives here, but everyone rules it out since no one's able to find it." The sub stopped at the gates and Mr. Frizzle rolled down the window next to him. Surprisingly, the water just glided around the sub. "Name?" The demigod guard asked.

"Anthony Frizzle." Mr. Frizzle answered.

"Oh, my! Go on through, and take I-95! It'll direct you straight to His Majesty's palace. I'll alert him you're on your way." The gates opened and the sub went through. All the passing demigods stopped to stare in awe as the class passed by, the class doing the same. "Who are they, and why are they staring at us?" Keesha asked. "Keesha, they're demigods, and you need to respect them! They are the sons and daughters of Poseidon and human women." Arnold said.

"For a Greek god that's immortal, you'd think he'd be wise enough to use protection." Carlos joked. The class chuckled at this, the actual funny joke he's made since third grade. Mr. Frizzle broke into laughter after trying to keep it in for so long. He turned onto 1-95 and asked, "Carlos, have you ever thought of being a comedian?" Carlos shook his head. "Well, you should. Ah, here we are, class!" Mr. Frizzle announced. The class ran up to the large windshield in the front and stared at the pixelized palace in front of them. Even if it _was_ pixelized, it was still impressive.

The demigod guarding the gate nodded at Mr. Frizzle as he let him in. Mr. Frizzle nodded back as he entered the palace. He entered the palace's hallway and transformed the sub back into a bus and drove on like he knew where he was going.

Suddenly, they came to a clearing. The bus came to a halt and the large man on the throne shrunk to the size of their bus. The bus doors opened and Mr. Frizzle bear hugged the Greek god. "Hey, Uncle Poseidon!" He greeted. "How's it going, Anthony?" He asked. "Swimmingly." Carlos said, poking his head out the bus doors. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. "Who are they?" Poseidon asked, pointing to the bus. "My class. I'm a teacher now. I was _kinda_ hoping you, Uncle Zeus, and Uncle Hades could tell them about Greek Mythology?" He asked.

"Well, I'm willing to; Zeus might, but Hades…"

"I know, he's kind of a grump, but I really want to give my students an experience they won't forget. Plus, they pleaded me, I had no choice. They left the class before I could say anything. So, please?" He pleaded. "Yep, no problem." Poseidon said, ruffling his nephew's hair. Mr. Frizzle went back to his class. "Okay, kids, you're about to deal with a Greek god. So, be polite, and don't say anything stupid. Carlos, I'm looking at you."

"Hey, Anthony, chill out. No need to put the _pressure_ on us!" He joked. "CARLOS!"

"Things like that." Mr. Frizzle groaned. "Alright, come on! We don't have much time." He ordered, leading the class to the god. "Hey, guys!" The god waved. "How's it going?" He asked. Arnold shrieked in excitement. "Y-you're Poseidon!" He weakly whispered. "Yep." That was the start of a brand new friendship. Arnold spitting out different facts about Poseidon, and Poseidon giving them different answers. It went like this until Mr. Frizzle ended the session, taking them to Hades next. The same thing happened there, as well as when they went to visit Zeus.

The class jumped out of the Suppose-A-Tron and back into the bus. The interior changed into what the bus was supposed to look like, as Mr. Frizzle stepped on the gas and drove back towards the school. "Well, class, despite the little bump in the middle, that was…incredible! I haven't gone on a road trip in forever!" He exclaimed. "What?" The class asked. "Oh, back when I was in college, me and my friends would go on field trips, too, but back then, we were in my car, and we called the adventures road trips." He explained. "But, that's beyond the point. This was exhilarating, and I've made an executive decision that we _will_ have field trips from now on!"

The class broke out into cheers as the bus pulled back into the school. Next to them, a similar looking bus appeared out of nowhere. Mr. Frizzle nodded to Valerie and she squealed. The class in her bus seemed shocked, but excited about their new experience. "Well, kids, the school day's over. Get out there, and go home!" He said opening the doors. The class ran out, following by Valerie's eighth period class. "Well, Valerie" Mr. Frizzle began when she climbed aboard. "I think this won't be a mistake. I'll do it." He told her. "Great!" She cheered. "We'll be the best teachers in the school!" She announced. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Val Gal." He told her, messing up her frizzy hair, making it frizzier.

All around the world, phones were ringing.

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

"This is the producer speaking, how can I help you?" He asked. "Hi, I just had a couple questions." The kid answered. "Shoot."

"Well, first, how come Ms. Frizzle's sister, Fiona, isn't back?" They asked. "You see, Fiona's still teaching elementary school, and she'd rather it stay that way. Anything else?" "Yeah, how come Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus are the most powerful Greek Gods?" The kid asked. "Because, they were the three that destroyed their father, Kronos."

"Final question: What happened to Mr. Frizzle when he found out D.A. was missing?" the kid asked. "He was just freaking out on the inside. He's fine." The producer answered. "Oh, good. I thought he was going to die! Bye!" The kid said. The producer was startled by the abrupt end of the conversation, but shrugged it off and left his office.


	5. The Magic School Bus Bugs a Bug

The students laughed their way into the classroom, reminiscing the good times they had back in elementary school. "Remember when Ralph got sick and we went inside his body?" Arnold asked. "Yeah, we almost got eaten by your white blood cells!" Phoebe added. "Hey, give me a break!" Ralph protested. "I was sick; I couldn't control what was happening!"He said. "Speaking of sick, Tim told me that his mom has a bug and since his dad is out on a business trip, he has to watch over her until she gets better." Carlos told the class. "Oh, man. That sucks for her." Ralph sadly added. "I hope she feels better." D.A. exclaimed. Suddenly, the model of a cell began rattling again. Ms. Frizzle sprung out of it and landed on her desk. "WELL, GOOD MORNING CLASS!" She shouted.

Her dress was red, but the top looked like slime dripping down onto the bottom. The bottom of her dress was decorated with white blood cells fighting against bacterial cells. She was wearing a mask over her mouth, and her earrings began to glow. "Good morning, Ms. Frizzle!" The class greeted her. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I heard that Tim Jamal's mother is suffering from sickness. Any truth to the rumor?" She asked. "Yeah, Ms. Frizzle. She has the stomach bug and can barely move, and Tim can't even leave her side." Carlos told the curious teacher. "Well, that sounds awful for her." Ms. Frizzle told them.

The class nodded in agreement, some letting their heads fall. "Well, why don't we express our condolences?" Ms. Frizzle suggested. "That sounds great, Ms. Frizzle, but Tim won't be back for a while. His mom _just_ got it out of _NOWHERE_!" Carlos explained to her. "And his dad won't be back for a long time!" He said, extending his arms, knocking Liz into the air. Liz landed on a bacterial cell and it caught Ms. Frizzle's eye, making it twinkle.

"Well, let's go to Tim! He can stay with his mother and we'll just give her our regards." Wanda exclaimed, already running out the door. "Yeah, let's go!" Keesha agreed, following Wanda. The class was out the door before you could say cell and their teacher raced after them. The class boarded the bus, followed by their teacher. The History class boarded their bus, the teachers nodded at each other.

Ms. Frizzle pulled the bus out of the lot as the other began to whirl. "I wonder what they're learning about!" Arnold said, pointing out the window. "I don't know, but I guess we'll find out later today." D.A. concluded. The bus turned onto Tim's street and stopped at his house, honking the horn. The door soon opened, and Tim gaped at the class eagerly awaiting his greeting. "Hi, guys. What are you doing here?" He asked. "Well, Tim, we came to wish your mom would get better." Ms. Frizzle explained. "Oh, sure! Come on in, but please take your shoes off. She's a bit of a neat freak." He chuckled, opening the door wide for them. He waved to the bus. "Hey bus, how's it going?" He asked. He bus honked at him, giving a wink. The boy led his friends up the stairs to his mother's room and knocked. "Mom? You have guests." He softly told her. "Oh, okay. Come in!" She had a heavy accent.

The students piled in, followed by Ms. Frizzle. The nine people blocked the TV. "Who are they, Tim? And is that Ms. Frizzle? Your third grade teacher?" She asked. "Mom, these are my classmates, ad this is our teacher, Ms. Frizzle, from third grade. You see, the school had lost a science teacher and knew how popular Ms. Frizzle was, so they asked her to join." The ill woman nodded. "I see. And is that your bus out there, Ms. Frizzle?" She asked. "Yes, it's my pride and joy. He's more than a pretty hood, you know." She chuckled. "We came to tell you we hope you feel better, Mrs. Jamal." Phoebe finally told her. "Oh, you did? Thank you, but you didn't have to do that." He face softened in pleasure.

"Don't mention it, Mrs. Jamal. It's not easy being sick." Ms. Frizzle told her. "Come along, class, I'm sure Mrs. Jamal would like to get back to her show." Mrs. Frizzle herded her students out the door. "Tim, honey? Could you make me some soup?" She asked before entering a hacking cough fit. "Of course, mom, just don't move!" Tim warned before shutting the door. "Where am I gonna go?" She sarcastically asked as the door shut. The class and their teacher sat on the couches in the living room. "Oh, hey, guys. Listen, I'm really worried." Tim told them. "Well, what seems to be the problem?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "We don't know what's wrong with her! We thought she had the flu, then the stomach bug, but now we're not sure! If we could just take out what's bothering her system and analyze it, life would be so much simpler!" He complained. "Anyway, I have to go make some soup." He slumped, heading into the kitchen. "Awe, poor, Tim. He's so worried." Phoebe sympathized.

"He doesn't even know what's wrong with her! How is he supposed to help her?" Keesha asked. "I know a way." Arnold suggested. All attention was now on him. "Um...I know I'm not one for field trips…but what if we went into Mrs. Jamal's nervous system and tried to identify what's wrong with her." It was silent for a moment before the class agreed at once. "Well, class, we still have to check with Tim if we have permission to do this." Ms. Frizzle interjected. She walked into the kitchen and a few moments later, she returned with Tim.

"It seems risky, and normally I'd want to check with my mom, but we have no time to prove to her that the bus is magic, so…I'm making a decision for her. I think it's best if you go." The class erupted into cheers, grabbing their shoes as they ran out of the house and onto the bus where Liz and the bus were waiting for some action.

"Tim, I know you're scared of what might happen, but I can guarantee you that the bus is tested and has had its shots, and I make sure that it's cleaned after every field trip. Your mother will be fine. You know, Tim, you're very brave to let us do this." She assured him. "Now, here's a little device I made for you to see what we see, and plug in your ear buds to hear what we hear. Remember, Tim, this is all for your mom. Now go give her that soup!" She encouraged. Ms. Frizzle left, shutting the door behind her. Tim ran into the kitchen to pour the pot into the bowl.

Back on the bus, Ms. Frizzle made an announcement. "Listen, class, this is not only a field trip, but a mission! We need to find a germ that's attacking Mrs. Jamal's immune system and obliterate them! Who's ready?" She shouted. The class erupted into a cheer. She sat down in the front and ordered, "SEATBELTS! EVERYONE!" The clicks came and the bus began to wiggle and then turn into a massive yellow tornado before shrinking down into a size where no one could see them unless they had a microscope. The Friz drove the bus to the window of Mrs. Jamal's room where Tim opened it, letting the bus in. "I figured you'd want some cool air, since you're under all that wool." He lied.

"Yeah, whatever, child. I'm cold enough already." She muttered shivering. Time shut the window, nearly on the bus too! It transformed into a mini submarine and dove into the piping hot soup. "Well, if you're so cold, do you mind heating up?" He asked. "Now, _that_ , I agree with! Gimme that soup!" She demanded, almost jumping out of the bed, reaching for it. "Mom, stay in the bed, I'll feed it to you." Tim told her. He set the bowl on her bedside table and sat down in front of her.

He grabbed the bowl and whispered, "Get ready, guys!"

"Did you say something, Hun?" His mom asked. "No, Mom. Now stop talking and open wide." Ms. Frizzle turned back to the students and announced, "HERE WE GO!" The bus lurched forward and into the spoon. As Tim lifted it out of the bowl, Ms. Frizzle shouted, "WA-HOO!"

"WHOAA!" The class shouted just as loud. The spoon reached the woman's mouth, and she clamped her lips on it when she spat it out, sending the bus flying across the room and towards the wall!

-|o|=|=|o|-

The bus was flying straight for the wall, bracing for a head on collision. Ms. Frizzle chuckled and said, "Well, class, as my English cousin, Count, always says, 'There's nothing like a little adrenaline to start the bloody day right!'" She pressed a button and a single spring connected to a baseball glove hit the wall.

"Mom! Why'd you do that?" Tim asked. "It was hot!" She complained. "Hmm..." Ms. Frizzle pondered a bit. "We don't have enough power. She pressed another button and two more mittens connected to springs popped out and pressed up against the wall. "Okay, now just open your mouth, Mrs. Jamal." Ms. Frizzle ordered as if Mrs. Jamal could hear her.

The sick woman blew on the soup before opening her mouth. Ms. Frizzle retracted the mittens and the bus was launched into the woman's mouth. It landed on her tongue on its side, before gliding down her throat alongside the soup that she had just swallowed. "Tim, I must really be sick. This tastes like metal." Mrs. Jamal told her son. He moved his hand behind his neck and scratched. "Well, try some more! It'll get better! Trust me." He said, genuinely smiling at his mother.

"How come we're going to the stomach, Ms. Frizzle?" Wanda asked. "We're supposed to go to her immune system." She said. "Don't you remember, Wan? When you go through the stomach into the small intestine, the walls are lined with villi which lead to the bloodstream." Carlos reminded her. "Perfectly petit perception, Carlos! Here we go, class!" As the bus fell into the stomach, Ms. Frizzle turned it into a submarine and dove into the small intestine.

"Arnold, how does it feel to be in the digestive system?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "It's…odd. This is what you all saw inside me?" He asked. "Yeah, Arn. Alright, Ms. Frizzle! Let's save Tim's mom!" Carlos shouted. The class cheered in the bus. Watching on the screen, Tim whispered, "Whatever you do, just don't hurt her."

The bus shrank and dove into the villi in front of them. With a satisfying _POP!_ the bus snuck its way into the bloodstream. "Class, yesterday, we were inside a eukaryotic cell, but today we're searching for a prokaryotic cell." Ms. Frizzle explained, putting the bus in auto drive and standing in the center aisle. "Prokaryotic and eukaryotic? What does that mean?" Ralph asked.

"According to my research, prokaryotic cells are cells _without_ a nucleus, but eukaryotes are ones _with_ a nucleus." D.A. explained. "Essential explanation, D.A.!"

"So eukaryotes are animal cells?" D.A. asked. "Mhm!" Ms. Frizzle clarified. "What? We were inside a girl, and girls are humans." Keesha argued. "Yes, but humans evolved from monkeys which are animals. Does anyone know any other type of eukaryote?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The bus did a barrel roll to avoid an incoming cell, and Ms. Frizzle stuck to the center aisle. "I'll give you a hint, they have chloroplasts!" Ms. Frizzle smiled. "PLANTS?" The class asked. "Mhm." Ms. Frizzle nodded.

"But what qualifies for a eukaryote? What separates eukaryotes and prokaryotes?" Phoebe asked. "You'll see soon enough, Phoebe!" Ms. Frizzle turned around. "Ah! Here comes a prokaryote now!" A cell with a long tail and what seemed to be hairs on it was coming head on for the bus. Ms. Frizzle took the driver's seat and turned off auto drive. She pressed a button and the bus shrunk down smaller than the cell. "MS. FRIZZLE!" The class shouted, before the bus made contact with the cell.

It attached to the cell and implanted by using metallic arms to stick to it. "Say hello to the prokaryote, class." Ms. Frizzle announced turning back, facing the class. "Hi…" the class awkwardly waved. Ms. Frizzle turned a dial on the dashboard and suits fell on the students' laps. They were hazmat suits with what seemed like an astronaut's helmet and a face mask that doctors wear. "Put these on, kids. We're going to investigate this cell."

"Why do we need to wear the masks?" Arnold asked. "According to my research, prokaryote cells are bacteria AKA germs. They make us sick!" D.A. announced. "That's right, D.A." Ms. Frizzle praised. "So, put them on class and please me by perambulating out to the prokaryote!" Ms. Frizzle shouted, already in her suit, jumping onto the cell. Wanda followed her and the others followed Wanda. "Remember to be safe, kids! I don't want you falling off!" Ms. Frizzle announced.

Ralph was hanging on to the tail on the end of the cell, shouting; "NOW SHE TELLS US!"

"I see that you have befriended the flagellum." Ms. Frizzle said bringing him back onto the cell. "That's a weird name." Ralph said. "Science is weird, Ralph." Tim chuckled to himself. "Tim Jamal! Who are you talking to?!" Tim's mom asked. "You never keep secrets from—mmph!" Tim shoved a spoonful of soup in her mouth, shushing her.

"Hey! What are these annoying hairy things?" Keesha asked trying to untangle herself from them. "I see you're having fun with the fimbriae!" Ms. Frizzle explained to Keesha."Fimbriae? Is that what these things are called? What are they for?" Carlos asked. "They're actually cytoplasm, reaching out externally. They're like the flagellum, but shorter.

"Speaking of cytoplasm, who wants to go swimming?" Ms. Frizzle asked putting a portable cytoplasm-suspension-disruptor on the ground. The class cheered before diving into the glow and transported into the cell. The students followed their teacher's example and were sent into the cell. "Well, class, anyone notice the difference between prokaryote cells and eukaryote cells yet?" Ms. Frizzle asked.

"Well, for one thing, Ms. Frizzle, there aren't any organelles!" Carlos pointed out. "Well, Carlos, like we established earlier, prokaryotes are bacteria and can anyone tell me what bacteria are?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class was perplexed as to what the answer was. "I'll give you a hint: it has the word cell and organism in it." She told them. "Cell, organism…unicellular organism?" D.A. asked. "Correct! Because they are only made up of one cell, there is no need for so many different organelles to help them live life." she explained.

"What is that mushy mess?" Phoebe asked completely disgusted. "Well class, notice what's missing! We know the organelles are missing, but what else is there in a eukaryote that there isn't in a prokaryote?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class pondered before Keesha came to a conclusion and gasped. "The nucleus!" She shouted. "There's no nucleus in here!" She announced. "YES!" Ms. Frizzle shouted in happiness. "The difference between prokaryotes and eukaryotes are the DNA! In eukaryotes, the DNA lives in the nucleus, but in prokaryotes, the DNA lives in the body because there nothing but space in the cytoplasm!" Ms. Frizzle explained.

"There's nothing in here but the DNA!" The class shouted. "Okay, but what does that have to do with my mom being sick?! You said you would go inside her body to find out what was wrong with her, and I let you! Time to fulfill your end of the bargain!" Tim demanded. "Tim Jamal, what is wrong with you today?" His mother asked, sitting up, exerting herself. "Mom, I'm fine, lay back down!" Tim insisted.

Back within Mrs. Jamal, Ms. Frizzle led the students out of the cell through the glow that got them in there in the first place. "I don't get it, Ms. Frizzle. Why aren't all cells the same?" Arnold asked. "Well because, Arnold, it's up to the cell to decide what gene in the person is used."

"According to my research, it's the protein _in_ the cell that decides what the function of the cell is."

"I see your brain cells are hard at work, D.A." Ms. Frizzle praised. "Ms. Frizzle, I'd hate to be a burden, but are those T cells coming our way?" Wanda asked. "Ah, yes, they mark the invaders so the white blood cells can obliterate them." Ms. Frizzle told the class. "Back to the bus, class." She requested. "Two by two, please." The class made a run for the bus, ignoring her "two by two" rule. They boarded the bus and buckled in, as Ms. Frizzle calmly joined them and sat in the driver's seat. "Liz, the regular cell-a-nator, please." Liz saluted and pressed a button that had cell on it.

The bus began to spin and grew as it did. It had transformed into a cell and the T cells left their path. "Phew, that was close." D.A. breathed out. "Why did they attack that cell?" Wanda asked. "I thought it was another cell we didn't learn about in third grade when we went inside Ralph's bloodstream." She wondered aloud. "Wanda, that was a bacterial cell. Ms. Frizzle said so herself." Phoebe said walking over to her. "So we just defended a cell that can make Tim's mom even sicker?" Wanda asked incredulously. "The way I see it, there are more invaders than there are white blood cells." Arnold said pointing out the window.

"Then figure out what's wrong with her and let me know so I can get the medicine!" Tim shouted now downstairs. "We're trying, Tim, but we can't help without getting the virus in here to study it and math it with the viruses in the database!" D.A. protested. "Listen here, D.A., this is my mother we're talking about! I won't let you leave her body without pinpointing what's wrong with her! I trusted you with this mission and if you let me down, I'm never trusting you guys again!" He angrily spat back.

"Tim, you better start talking right now, or else you're grounded." Mrs. Jamal stood behind him on the staircase and was wrapped in a soft blanket.

Back within Mrs. Jamal, the bus pushed against the flow of the blood and dove into the lamina propria. "Have you been here before class?" She asked. "Yeah, once! With your sister!" Keesha answered. "Interesting, you'll have to tell me about it sometime!" Ms. Frizzle eagerly suggested. "It's so dark, I can't see out the window!" Arnold whined. "Well of course it is, Arnold, this place if filed with invaders!" Ms. Frizzle cheerfully told them. "WHAT?" The class shouted. "Where are the white blood cells?" Phoebe innocently asked. "Well, they've probably been overcome by the virus. But not to worry, the white blood cells in the bloodstream should flow in soon." Ms. Frizzle assured.

"Yes to worry! If there are no white blood cells to save Mrs. Jamal's immune system, they'll take over!" Ralph protested. "We need to do something!" Keesha demanded. "I have an idea!" Carlos shouted. "Ms. Frizzle! Does the bus have a white blood cell copying button?" Ms. Frizzle frowned. "It does not, no. But it does have a white blood cell copying lever!" She responded smiling. She pulled the lever and the cell bus transformed into a white blood cell bus.

"Now, let's get out there and destroy some particles, and D.A., you analyze the particles to figure out what they are!" Carlos said. He hit another button and the floor around the eight students gave way. The bus spat out eight pods, each white blood cells. "Class, be careful out there!" Ms. Frizzle warned, bringing the bus to a virus and letting the bus eat it. "That's a good bus." Ms. Frizzle praised. She kept going, he class following the example.

"You see, mom, I'm playing a game where you have to talk like you're screaming at your classmates that have just dove inside your sick mom." He lied. "What kind of a game is that?" His mom asked.

"I'VE GOT IT!" D.A. shouted. "TIM'S MOM HAS INFUENZA!" She added. "Ah, yes, one of the worst sicknesses to get." Tim's face morphed into shock. "Tim, are you alright?" His mother asked. "Mom, I just realized you have influenza." He told her. "What?"

"You have a 103℉ fever, you always have a headache, you've been vomiting, and have diarrhea." Tim explained. "All signs of influenza. How did I not see it sooner? Thank you, Tim. I'm going to go back to bed. I'm sorry I made you uncomfortable." She kissed his forehead and went upstairs. "Well, guys, what do we do now?" Tim asked. "Well, Tim, there is a vaccine to get rid of influenza." Ms. Frizzle explained.

"Awe, man. That costs cash, and I barely make ten dollars working at McReginalds." Tim worriedly complained. "Well, Tim, the virus might take over if you don't do anything." Ms. Frizzle warned. Tim gasped, about to faint. "Don't fall over, Tim. If you want, the bus has an upgraded version of the vaccine that will cure your mom quicker. Do you want me to—"

"YES!" The entire class shouted, including the student outside of the field trip. "Okay, class!" Ms. Frizzle agreed. She pressed a button on the dashboard and the bus spat out a liquid that surrounded the virus and the class. "GET OUT OF THERE QUICK, CLASS! THAT UPDATED VERSION SURROUNDS AS MUCH AS THE VIRUS AS IT CAN AND SWALLOWS IT WHOLE!" Ms. Frizzle warned.

"Does it think we're the virus?" Phoebe asked. "I'd guess yes!" Ralph yelled. "WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!" He cried. The virus surrounded the pods as they tried to escape, and began to close in on the virus and the class. Ms. Frizzle leapt into action and the cell-bus nosedived into the cure. The bus sucked up the pod just as the cure surrounded the virus and the bus! Ms. Frizzle pressed the rocket booster button and the bus shot out of the cure. It transformed into a bus as it exited the lamina propria and into the nose.

"How are we supposed to leave?" Wanda asked staring out the window. "Well, as my sister's good friend, Nasal Hazel used to say, 'Take no rest, take no pause! We're on our way out of the shnoz.'" Ms. Frizzle held her nose before extending the feather-retractionator. The bus' hood opened and a single hand holding a feather popped out and tickled the inside of Mrs. Jamal's nose. "Buckle your seatbelts, kids, this one's gonna be expulsive!" Ms. Frizzle warned. Suddenly, the bus was sent flying out of the nose, a gust of air sending the class flying.

Ms. Frizzle retracted the feather-retractionator and brought out the turbo boosters. The bus flew out the window before regrowing to normal size in front of Tim's house. Tim ran out to greet them before the left. "Hey, guys." He said. He unplugged the ear buds and handed the device back to Ms. Frizzle. The class gave him a disgusted look. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I was just worried that my mom wouldn't make it. Her doctor is really incompetent compared to D.A."

Dorothy Ann blushed as the compliment. "I just wanted to thank you for risking your lives back there in the lamina propria. I really do appreciate you guys, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

"Well as I always say, a subtle appreciation goes farther than words." Ms. Frizzle told them.

All around the world, phones were ringing.

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

"Hi, this is the Magic School Bus, producer speaking." The producer said. "Hi, I just watched your show on bacterial cells, and I'm a little confused." The kid on the other end of the line said. "Aren't you glad you have a _cell_ to call in and get some answers?" The producer laughed at his own joke before putting on his bib and picking up his fork to impale his pasta. "What's your question?" He asked shoving a forkful in his mouth. "My mom told me that not all bacterial cells are bad." The kid said. "But I thought bacteria was the stuff that made us sick." The producer spat out some pasta and swallowed. The wind outside howled, leaves floating around in the wind.

"True, some of bacteria make you sick and invade your nervous system. But other bacteria are good! There's bacteria in your stomach that aid digestion, and some bacteria clean out waste in the ocean, such as oil spills. Other bacteria break down leaves and even milk into yogurt and cheese! In the famous words of Carlos, 'that's some gouda bacteria!'" He told the kid.

"Please stop. You've made enough jokes. Next question. When the class entered Ralph's nervous system, you never covered the topic of _how_ bacteria enter the body." Liz ran in, bleeding, silently pleading for a band-aid. The producer opened his drawer and took out a single band-aid, telling her to hop onto the table. "Well, there are lots of places. Common places for germs to sneak in are open cuts, our mouth, and our nose. At least our nose has protection!" The producer said. "Yeah, thanks, nose hairs! But you forgot one that my science teacher told me about!" The kid told him.

The producer had finished putting the band-aid on Liz. "Oh yeah? What's that?" He asked. "Our eyes! Just like eye drops sneak in, bacteria that are hiding on our hands can enter when we rub them." The kid said. Liz's band-aid slipped a bit, and a couple drops of blood landed on the producer's pasta. "Really? I didn't know that! Thanks for the tip and for calling." He hung up and fixed Liz's band-aid before going to take a bite of his pasta.

 _RING! RING!_

The producer sighed, butting down the forkful and answering the phone. "Magic School Bus, producer speaking."

"That was a bloody good episode! But, you didn't talk about cross cuts." The kid said. "Cross cuts?" The producer asked. "Yeah. This one time, my friend and I were playing when he got cut. It was a minor cut, so we ignored it. Then I got cut and he fell on top of me. His blood mixed with mine, and then the next week, we got sick!" The kid told him. "Ah, I see. You never know what sickness someone could have. It might even be a sexual disease. That's why it's important to not take anyone's blood. Especially don't drink it!" The producer warned.

"Drink it? What are we vampires?" The kid asked. "I don't believe you watch the show for the plot…" The producer joked. "Thanks for calling, bye!" The producer was about to take a bite of his pasta, when he noticed the blood. "I didn't put any sauce on this! Liz, did you bleed on my pasta?" Liz sadly nodded. "Hey, it's okay, we can't control where things go. We just have to move on. I'm gonna go get some more pasta, come with me!"

The lizard happily hopped onto his shoulders and they left the room and headed for the kitchen.


	6. The Magic School Bus Is a Spy

The class rushed into History and quickly sat down. The excitement oozed off of them, the aura filling the room. Suddenly, Carlos noticed they were one student short. "Hey, where's D.A.?" He asked. Suddenly, a figure began banging against the door. It was Dorothy Ann, completely involved in the book she was reading. "D.A.! Open the door!" Wanda shouted. D.A. was shocked out of her trance and fell over. She got up a moment later and entered the class.

"Hey, guys." She awkwardly greeted. Then, her nose was sucked back into the book. "D.A., don't you think that reading boring information ever gets…you know… _boring_?" Ralph asked. "This isn't an information book, Ralph. This book is fiction. It's about a spy who's on the most dangerous mission of his life. And he somehow just got the enemy to fall in love with him and now…the author goes into full detail about their love-making!" She sighed. "Imagine, ladies, being muscular Agent Roodrowe's prey…" D.A.'s eyes rolled to the back of her head.

"I'd tell ya, I'd do anything to be a spy." Carlos said. "All the babes and martinis! Man, that would be one hell of a life! It'd be amazing!" Suddenly, a rope dropped from behind them with no one noticing. It was dressed in all black spandex, and was creeping up on Carlos. It had a gun and placed it to the back of his head. "Target located." It whispered. Its voice was robotic. Carlos felt the cold metal touch his head and froze.

"You may want to rethink that, Carlos." It said threateningly. Then the person touched their throat, turning off the voice disguiser and added, standing up, "Because spy work is not like it is in the movies. Especially not in the old days." Mr. Frizzle added hopping onto the desk all the way at the front. He crouched into a fighting stance. "In the movies, it's nothing but martinis, babes, and awful plans to destroy the earth that would have destroyed the madman too, but end up being thwarted last minute."

Mr. Frizzle stood up straight. "But trust me, if spy work were anything like this, everyone would be bragging about how they were spies and would probably end up being murdered by their best friend." Mr. Frizzle chuckled. "But Mr. Frizzle, Mrs. Reede gave me this book. It's by Diana Wright, and it's based on real life events." D.A. countered. "Well, D.A., Diana Wright didn't have a magic bus to prove that spy work is not all _spy_ ciness and romance!" Mr. Frizzle joked. "Oh my gosh, I made a Frizzle joke!" He pumped his fist. "Nailing this job!" He congratulated himself.

"Are you suggesting we go back in time and learn about spy work?" D.A. excitedly asked. "Mhm, but the official name is espionage. To the bus!" He announced, pointing out the door. The class ran out, filled with joy and excitement. Mr. Frizzle jumped out of the window again, unzipping his spandex suit, revealing a new suit. It was all gray with the spy symbol on the right pant leg. It was also a pin on his collar. It began to glow as he unlocked the bus doors and ran on. "Come on, Chip!" He called. The squirrel that no one noticed was on Keesha's head, unzipped its own spandex suit, tossing it to the ground, finally revealing his fur, and running on.

The class boarded the bus, eager to begin the field trip. Ms. Frizzle's class ran out after them, about to begin their field trip on bacterial cells. "That reminds me, Tim is absent because—" Carlos began.

"Ms. Frizzle filled me in on it, don't worry." He winked at Valerie who winked back and both busses began to spin side by side. Mr. Frizzle's bus turned into a plane that took flight quickly, while Ms. Frizzle's bus disappeared. "Where are we going, Mr. Frizzle?" Wanda asked. "Well, I figured, before we go back, we'd stop at the CIA to visit my pal." Mr. Frizzle suggested. "You have a friend at the CIA?" Ralph asked. "Cool!" Arnold added.

The plane rose up before nosediving at the CIA building. "Chip?" Mr. Frizzle asked averting his attention to the squirrel. It punched in an order and pulled the lever. The plane landed before whirling into a bus again. The doors opened and Mr. Frizzle led the class to the front doors. He went through a series of different locks before being able to enter the building alongside his students. "Name?" The man at the desk asked reaching for his gun. "Anthony Frizzle." Mr. Frizzle responded smiling brightly at the man. "Floor G, room 38. Don't go anywhere else." The man snapped. The teacher led his students to the floor and room before entering.

"There he is! Daniel—oops! I forgot no last names!" Mr. Frizzle chuckled. "Anthony, long time no see!" Daniel greeted warmly. "Who are they?" Daniel asked pointing to the class. "Oh, I brought in some recruits." Anthony joked. "They look a bit young, though." Daniel alarmingly noted. "I'm joking! I'm a teacher now, and this is my class! That's Arnold, Ralph, Keesha, Phoebe, Carlos, Wanda, and Dorothy Ann, or D.A. I'm down a student."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Daniel sadly lowered his head. "No, Daniel! He's not dead! He's just watching over his sick mother!" Daniel awkwardly laughed and coughed. "I knew that!" He said. "No you didn't. Anyway, I was hoping you'd tell them a bit on what it's like to be an agent." Anthony said. "Wait, Mr. Frizzle. I thought that it was spy." D.A. tried to correct.

"Well, technically agents are usually classified as government 'property,' while anyone can be a spy, Dorothy Ann." Daniel corrected. "Ah." D.A. noted. "And sorry, that info is classified. How'd you get here, anyway? This place is top secret, far away from civilization." Daniel asked. Then it slowly sunk in. "The bus?" He asked. "Yes, just as I was going to suggest! To the bus!" Mr. Frizzle cried, pointing out. The class ran out, followed by Mr. Frizzle, followed by Daniel. Daniel passed them all swiftly out of the building to the waiting bus outdoors. Chip scurried after Daniel, the class following him. Mr. Frizzle brought up the rear before unlocking the bus and rubbing its hood. "Ready, bus?" He asked.

He boarded after his students and took the driver's seat, buckling in. "Seatbelts—"

"Wait, where are you going? There's literally nowhere to go for miles!" Daniel asked. "Would you like to join us?" Mr. Frizzle offered. "Me? But, I have work to do and…"  
"Oh, just get in. It won't take much _time_." His pin began to glow as Daniel, succumbing to the peer pressure, got on and sat behind Mr. Frizzle next to D.A.

"Seatbelts everyone!" Mr. Frizzle ordered. Daniel snickered. "Who wears seatbelts?" He asked laughing. Arnold tapped him from the seat behind them. "Trust me, if you don't want to be thrown around like a rag doll, you're going to want to wear that seatbelt." Arnold warned. Daniel sarcastically put on the seatbelt as Mr. Frizzle typed something into the input board and pulled the lever. The bus began to pull in different directions before turning into a tornado of a whirlwind. "WHAT'S HAPPENING?!" Daniel shrieked. "A FIELD TRIP!" The class shouted back.

The timeline bar was sent back to the sunglasses. Once the bar stopped, a light shone for a split second on it. The bus was surrounded by a familiar blue glow with golden sparkles that lashed out all over the earth, sending the class, and their guest, back in time. The bus continued spinning until it shrunk into a fly. Mr. Frizzle flew the bus onto a large rock and parked there.

"What happened? Where are we?" Daniel freaked out. "Daniel, you know the bus is magic, this shouldn't be a shocker to you. I'm a History teacher and we've gone back in time to when the Aztecs still roamed." The class, now shrunk, was shocked. "Why here? This isn't where my book takes place." D.A. complained. "It takes place in America in the modern day."

"Well D.A., as I always say, 'Complaining gets you nowhere.'" Mr. Frizzle told her. "Wait a minute…what's with all the racket?" Arnold complained. He wasn't wrong. There was loud shouting right outside and the cries of different voices. He class basically trampled Daniel as they looked outside the window on the left side of the bus and gasped. "We're in the middle of a war?" Keesha cried.

-|o|=|=|o|-

"Oh bad, oh bad, oh bad, bad, bad." Keesha whined. "What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do?" Wanda exclaimed. "Why would Mr. Frizzle bring us to a war zone?" Carlos questioned. "Well, class if you look closely, you might notice something interesting." Mr. Frizzle told them. The class searched through the war zone but nothing caught their eye. "Anyone want to take a _shot_ at it?" Mr. Frizzle asked, chuckling. "I don't see anything, Mr. Frizzle. In my book, there's nothing but one on one fights with somersaults and guns." D.A. told him.

"Well, not every spy acts like that. Seatbelts everyone, and I'll show you what I mean!" The class got in their seats and buckled in. As soon as everyone was fastened into their seats, Mr. Frizzle took off and the bus went flying towards the head of a warrior. The bus cleverly disguised as a fly landed unnoticed on the warrior's head. The warrior walked forward shooting at nothing and then turned around and began shooting at his teammates.

"What?" The class asked in confusion. "Huh?" D.A. said. "Unless the spy is a double agent, Agent Roodrowe never shoots his allies." D.A. pointed out. "Well, class, what if those you perceived to be partners may not perfectly perform." Mr. Frizzle announced. "WHAT?" The class asked. "D.A. said it, already." Daniel told them. "This guy is a double agent." He added.

"Wait, all these spy terms are messing with my brain." Arnold moaned. "What is a double agent?" He asked. "A double agent is a spy that goes undercover working for their enemy operatives, while in reality they're working for the opposite of their enemies." Phoebe explained.

"So is that what this guy is? A double agent?" Carlos asked.

"Excellent observation, Carlos." Mr. Frizzle sang out.

"Incredible. All this time, I thought that older tribes just went to war with each other and that was it. I never knew that there were spies back here too." Wanda exclaimed in awe. "Yes, well, just because there were spies back here, doesn't mean that spies have been around forever." D.A. snapped, believing in her book. "Obviously, spying came back very recently."

"What makes you so sure about that?" Daniel and Mr. Frizzle asked in unison. "D.A., you may be a science whiz, but trust me, you are wacko in the brain if you believe that spies have only _just_ showed up." Carlos called from the back of the bus. "Now, Carlos, there's no need to be like that." Mr. Frizzle tsked. "Why don't we prove to her?" Mr. Frizzle suggested.

"Okay, bus, do your stuff!" Mr. Frizzle shouted, moving forward in the spy section of the timeline. Golden light surrounded the bus, and blue sparkles emanated from it. "Now what?" Daniel asked. "We're going forward in time, bro!" Mr. Frizzle told him. "YA-HOO!" He shouted as the light surrounded the earth. Time fast forwarded and placed the class (and guest) into the Victorian Era. The fly landed on air and floated around. "Does anyone know where we are?" Mr. Frizzle asked. The class stared out the windows. No one could figure it out. "I don't understand what we're doing here, Mr. Frizzle." Daniel had a grin on his face. "Do you know where we are, Daniel?" He nodded. "I won't say." He told them.

"Well as I always say, 'if you don't know the answer to something, find it.'" Mr. Frizzle landed the fly on a marked table and opened the door. "Now, get out there and LEARN!" He said pointing to the outside world. The class checked out the scenery, looking for any clues. "Hey! What's going on over there?" Ralph asked. Across the street, a woman sent her son to school and told the daughter to go back inside. The kids looked about the same age. Their neighbors were saying goodbye to each other before the man left for work.

"Is it just me, or is this Sexist City?" Ralph asked. "It's not just you, Ralph!" Wanda said gritting her teeth. "Why did the girl have to stay home? Those kids are the same age! She should be going to school and getting her education too." Carlos asked Mr. Frizzle.

"Well, Rosie the Riveter wasn't always around, Carlos." Mr. Frizzle answered ambiguously. D.A. finally put the context clues together. "I've got it! We're in the Victorian Era! But why are we here? My book takes place in the present day." She, clearly confused, asked. "Well, class, what did you notice looking at the two families?" Mr. Frizzle asked.

"Well, the daughter had to stay home, and so did the mom." Carlos said. "And I noticed the lady next door seemed upset when her husband left her alone."Keesha pointed out. "Exactly. Now, Ralph, can you repeat what you called this place?" Daniel asked. "Uh…Sexist City?" He asked. "Precisely." Daniel praised. "I get it!" Phoebe noted. "This is before women were allowed to serve in the military! This was before Rosie the Riveter convinced the world that women are important too!" She explained. "Yes!" Mr. Frizzle called out. "You get it! Now, who wants to see some sneaky ladies?" He asked. The class raised their hands.

"Great!" Mr. Frizzle crossed his arms and hopped once. "Rivet!" He yelled. "Be frogs with me class, and RIVET!" He yelled hopping into the driver's seat. The class followed his lead and got into the seats of the bus, followed by Daniel. "Did we forget anyone?" He asked. "No Mr. Frizzle." The class responded in unison. "Good, because everyone is going to want to see this!" Mr. Frizzle said, turning the fly into a mini fighter jet. It took off and flew to the military boot camp.

"What are we doing here?" Keesha asked. "I thought we were coming to see sneaky women." She added. 'Yeah, it's all guys out there." Carlos backed. "Really? Take a closer look at that troop." Mr. Frizzle said, turning the us into a miniaturized version of itself, landing on the shirt. "Well, he seems quite normal to me." Phoebe said. "Don't you mean _she_ , Phoebe?" Daniel asked. "Huh?" The class asked. "Take a look at the mustache." Daniel ordered. "Hey…it looks drawn on." Arnold said. "And now that I think…this guy has a certain curvature to him. This isn't a guy! It's a girl!" Arnold told them.

"But I thought we were in the Victorian Era! No ladies were allowed to be troops." D.A. protested. "Yes, but what's the purpose of drawing a mustache on your upper lip?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "I'll give you a hint. It begins with _de_ and ends with _guise_." He hinted. "A DISGUISE!" The class shouted, realizing. "Correct!"

"So those women down there aren't troops! They're spies in fake!" Carlos realized aloud. "Yes, Carlos, but the term is technically called _undercover_ ~" Mr. Frizzle said it in such a way that it sent chills down all the girls' spines. It did for Arnold and Carlos, too. "Now does anyone know when this prejudice end?" He asked. No one spoke up. A soft cough came from the back of the bus. Mr. Frizzle moved the bar and the light and sparkles returned. The class was sent forward in time once more, this time in the middle of a meeting. "And let the record show that we will now allow women to be a part of secret intelligence agencies." The person they were hiding on announced. "I'll give you another hint. Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue..." He began.

"In 1492!" The class shouted back. "Now swap the four with the nine and what do you get?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "1942!" The class responded happily. "Well, class, we've taken the grand tour up to date!" Mr. Frizzle announced. "We're going home!" He moved the bar to the image of a house and a doorbell ring sounded. He pulled the lever and they were off!

When they got back to school, Dorothy Ann stared at her book's cover. "Are you alright, Dorothy Ann?" Mr. Frizzle asked. Chip was on his shoulders, but then jumped down to her, and put the book on the desk. D.A. picked up Chip and pet him as she responded, "It's just…I can't believe one of my books had false information. I've always believed my books!" She whined sadly. "Well, Dorothy Ann, it's very easy to get tricked into what you don't know especially if the author makes it all interesting and exciting. I bet Diana Wright didn't even do any research before writing about this topic." Mr. Frizzle consoled her.

"There's one more thing bothering me." She told him. "What's that?" He asked, sitting down in the seat front of her backwards. "In my book, when a spy gets caught, they get grilled for information, and then placed in high maximum security so they don't escape." She explained. "As do most TV shows and movies. I bet you're wondering if that's true or not. Well, if I can find it…" e said standing up and searching through his desk drawer. Random objects flew out as he threw them out of the way. A shoe, a life sized toy boat, a spare tire for the bus, and so one.

"AHA! Found it!" He announced. "Found what, Mr. Frizzle?" Phoebe asked. "I found this short five minute educational film that talks about what happens to spies once they're caught. It's very gory, so if you would like to stay behind, I'm fine with that." Mr. Frizzle told them, putting in the DVD and starting the film. "Well, inside the movie, of course! Up close and personal. Phoebe, Arnold, and Keesha stayed behind, and the rest of the class dove into the movie using some of the Frizzle magic.

"Now, class, just listen to what the narrator has to say, and you'll be fine." Mr. Frizzle orders.

"The spy creeps down the hall and into the other corridor. He is searching for the missing files. Unfortunately…he is caught." The lights in the room flickered to life and a gun was held to the spy's temple. "There are two outcomes to being caught. The first is death." The narrator explained. The spy sat in the electric chair before being electrocuted to death. The class watched in horror as the guts splattered everywhere. D.A. looked at Mr. Frizzle who seemed unfazed.

"The second is maximum security prison. But most of the time, it's death." The screen went black, sending the kids out of the movie screen and back into the middle school classroom. "That was awful!" D.A. said, crying. "I can't believe that so many people died from doing their jobs." Ralph said, remorseful. "Well class, just remember, they're doing this to keep safe. They know this is a dangerous occupation, but they choose to do it anyway. Okay, I'll let you leave early. Bye, guys." The class slowly left the classroom, leaving Mr. Frizzle to think about his decisions of the day.

All around the world, phones were ringing.

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer and Chip lurked around the corner, trying to remain hidden when his phone rang out loudly. He fumbled with it for a moment before answering the call. "Hello?" He whispered. "Hi, is this the Magic School Bus?" The kid on the other line asked. "Yep, this is the producer. How can I help?"

"Well, I've got questions." The kid told him. The producer stood up straight, forgetting he needed to be quiet. "Well, I have answers. Ask away." He said. Chip tugged on his pants trying to get him to hush but the producer payed no attention to him. "Well, you didn't keep going after the 1940's. How come?" The kid asked.

"Well, that's because Mr. Frizzle basically covered all of it. Everything is still basically the same from the 1940's up, except now, we have advancing technology." Chip shushed the producer, but he just kicked Chip into the coat rack. Stunned, Chip took a minute in there to recover. "Oh, I guess that makes sense." The kid responded. "Secondly, I was told there was another punishment for caught spies. Something about trading?" The kid asked. "Yep, some spies could be killed, put into security, or traded into different organizations to be dealt with. It all comes full circle, but in a _bad_ way." The producer explained.

Chip tried to get up and out of the coat rack, but fell back in, blending his fur color with a coat that was the same color as the brown of his fur. "Final question: how many spies have been captured?" The kid asked. "Well, no one knows for sure, but the number is huge, and is still growing. Thanks for calling." The producer said, hanging up his phone. "Hey, Chip, you there?" The producer asked. Suddenly, the other producer and Liz turned the corner and soaked him with water guns. "AHA!" The female producer shouted.

"Aww, man, you got me." The male producer sighed. "I guess we're out Chip. Chip?" He asked. The squirrel was nowhere to be seen, until Liz and the female producer got sprayed. He revealed himself from the shadows of the coat and celebrated silently. "YEAH! WE WON LITTLE GUY!" The producer cheered, celebrating with him.


	7. The Magic School Bus Has Got to Jet

The class piled into the classroom, ready for another exciting adventure with the Friz. "Tim, how's your mom?" Phoebe asked. "She's doing better. Thanks for inspecting her, you guys. If you hadn't…I don't know what I would do." Time said. "I would be a _sickening_ experience." Carlos joked. "Carlos!" The class groaned. "Not even five minutes into the period, Carlos." D.A. complained. "So, where's the Friz? And where are we going today? I can't wait!" Wanda eagerly (and impatiently) said.

"Well, if she doesn't show up, I'll be happy watching this." Ralph said. He was on his phone watching the live race that was a few blocks away. "Ralph! You know you're not supposed to be using your phone during school hours!" D.A. complained. "Well, if there's no teacher to tell us what to do, I'm going to do what I want. I really wish I could be there to witness all the action." Ralph excitedly exclaimed, his eyes glowing with exhilaration. Suddenly, Ralph's phone started to twist and stretch until Ms. Frizzle popped out of it, and jumped onto Ralph's desk, floating onto it. "HELLO!" She sang out to the class. "MS. FRIZZLE!" The class shockingly greeted.

'Now, I hear one of my students wants to race to the race? Sounds like you'll need some wheels! I can provide those easily." Ms. Frizzle floated off of Ralph's desk and to the ground and walked out the door before popping her head back in and asking, "Coming, class?"

The bus drove down the road and turned onto Main Street. "Ms. Frizzle, are we really going to see a race?" Ms. Frizzle nodded facing Phoebe. "Well, who doesn't like a little excitement?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class noticed her outfit had changed. She was now wearing a jumpsuit that was all read, with checkered flags plopped on it. She was also wearing black boots, and a black baseball cap that had a checkered flag on it.

The bus pulled into the parking lot of the racing stadium and Ms. Frizzle led her class in through the entrance and into the stands. "Have a seat class, the race will begin shortly. If you want to, go buy yourselves something to eat." She gladly suggested. Ralph dug around in his book bag that he had brought before they left, and pulled out ten dollars. "Ms. Frizzle, I'm going to get a hot dog." He told her. "Be back soon, Ralph. We don't want to miss this, now do we?" She winked at him.

Ralph left the group and stood in line at the concession's stand behind two teenagers when he heard one say to the other, "So, when I got in, I heard the dude's radio say 'one of the jets isn't working. We'll have to cancel the show.'" Ralph gasped and ran back to Ms. Frizzle. "Ms. Frizzle! Ms. Frizzle! There's a catastrophe!" He shouted. "A conundrum? Convey me this crazy calamity!" She asked. "One of the jets isn't working! The ones that fly over while the cars are doing their pace lap! They're cancelling the show! We have to do something, Ms. Frizzle! A race is nothing without the jets!" Ralph begged.

"Well then, Ralph, let's jet to the jets and fix this problem! To the bus!" Ms. Frizzle ordered, pointing. Her outfit changed to bright blue. She was still wearing a jumpsuit, boots and cap, but now there was a large cloud on the chest, and her boots and cap were white, too. A pattern of jets went around her lower body until the boots cut off her pants. A jet was on her cap and her earrings were jets too. They began to glow wildly. "Liz, you too. We have some work to do." She winked at the reptile and together, they followed the class onto the awaiting school bus. The vibrant, magical school bus. She boarded said bus, followed by the lizard and shut the doors.

"Alright class, we're heading where no kid has gone before! Seatbelts everyone!" She called to the students behind her. "Here we go!" She shouted, pulling the lever in the center of the aisle. The bus looked around to make sure no one was looking before turning into a yellow tornado that went through the parking lot and into the garage as it got smaller. It snuck through the garage and into the place where they kept the jets, and went into one of them. It stopped spinning and was now shrunk down. It also was covered in cartoonish jets. "Where are we?" D.A. asked. "I know!" Phoebe shouted. "We're in a jet!" She announced.

-|o|=|=|o|-

"What are we doing in here, Ms. Frizzle? I thought e were going to fix the jet!" Ralph criticized running up t her seat, looking out the front windshield. "Well, Ralph, what better way to fix a jet than to know how it works?" Ms. Frizzle responded. "Bu we know how jets work. You taught us this two years ago in fourth grade. The air travels that over the wings faster, and then the air that travels underneath is slower, but it pushes the wings up." Ralph said. "Well as my twelve trillion, six hundred and thirty six billion, three hundred and eight million, two hundred and four thousand, eight hundred and second cousin, Bennet, used to say, 'Knowing the outside of something is completely different than knowing its core.'" Ms. Frizzle told him.

"So we're inside a jet. How do we know it's the broken one?" Keesha asked. "I have knack for being able to see the world as its spinning at a very quick speed and there was a sign on the one next to this one that said broken." Ms. Frizzle explained. "Then why aren't we there?" Ralph asked, completely out of patience. "Because Ralph, if we know how one thing works correctly, we can find why one works incorrectly!" Carlos explained.

"Or doesn't work at all!" Wanda added. "I don't care about the working part; I just don't want to get blown out of here!" Arnold complained. "Well, I can't make that promise to you Arnold, because we're gonna get out there and EXPLORE!" Ms. Frizzle said, pulling the tug at the top of the bus. "But on your hypothermal, protective, tracking super duper suits everyone!" Ms. Frizzle ordered.

The class surrounded the bus in their odd clothing, ready to go deeper into the jet engine. "Well, class, as I always say, 'WAHOO!'" Ms. Frizzle cried, sliding down the tube they were in. "What are we in?" Carlos asked. "Hey, isn't this the tail pipe? Like the one on the bus?" Wanda asked pointing to the bus. It honked at being recognized. "Precisely, Wanda. Most transportation devices burn something that turns it into smoke, and jets are no exception!" Ms. Frizzle says.

"That's why you see large clouds of smoke after they fly by." She explains. The class slid after their teacher as they went farther down the tail pipe. "Hey, what are those giant blades?" Phoebe asked. "I don't know. Check it out, class." Ms. Frizzle suggested.

The class slid over to it and saw that they were rounded as opposed to sharp. "These kind of look like fans." Ralph pointed out. "Exactly! These are fans, but the correct term is turbine!" Ms. Frizzle told them. "According to my research, these bring in air to the combustion chamber." D.A. told the class. "Were is that Ms. Frizzle?" Arnold asked. "Well, if you keep asking questions, Arnold, you'll keep getting answers." Ms. Frizzle said, slipping through a hole in the fan and moving on.

"Class, does anyone remember what D.A. called this?" Ms. Frizzle asked, being whisked away by the air moving her around. "This is the combustion chamber!" Carlos said. "Where the air and fuel mix gets burned." He explained. "Exactly! Where else do we know this from?" Ms. Frizzle asked them. The class pondered this for a moment. "A bus or a car! Those have them! They have the sparkplug, remember?" Carlos answered again. "Correctumundo! You're on fire today, kids!" Ms. Frizzle praised them. "Literally!" Tim yelled. "Look out!" The air burst into flames and the class was shot into the next part of the engine.

Their suits were singed, but still were fine for the most part. "Hey, something in my helmet said my suit's level just dropped." Arnold said cautiously. "Is that bad?"

"No, that sign is good. It tells you how much more your suit can take." Ms. Frizzle explained. "Come along, everyone!" She ordered, waving them over. Arnold gulped and kept moving forward alongside his classmates. "I'll let you figure out this one on your own, class." Ms. Frizzle told them. "Well, it's really weird." Wanda said. "Everything about this class is weird." Tim said. "I mean we have a magic bus." He added. The bus honked at him causing him to jump. "You know what I mean, bus." He said, petting the hood.

"WHOA!" Carlos shouted, being lifted by gasoline. Suddenly, he fell back down and lifted his hand to his head. "I'm getting a sinking feeling. That hurt." He told the class. "Well, don't succumb to the pressure, Carlos!" Ms. Frizzle told him. "Wait…say that again." He asked. "Don't succumb to the pressure, Carlos!" Ms. Frizzle encouraged, winking at him. "Pressure!" He shouted. Is this thing some sort of pressurizer?" He asked. Ms. Frizzle nodded giving a thumbs up. "Precisely. This is called the rotary compressor. It compresses the gasoline in the jet." Ms. Frizzle explained. "And I got swept up in it, which is why I felt so woozy. Like when the bus lost its magic at the near bottom of the ocean."

"I hate to interrupt, but I overheard some mechanics, and they said the jet show is nearing! We have to figure out what's wrong with the other jet!" Ralph insisted. "Let's move!" He declared charging into the next part of the jet. The class followed his example. "Hey Ralphie, lighten up on the pressure, will ya?" Carlos joked.

"Number one: my name is Ralph. Number two: I will not lighten up." Ralph told Carlos very seriously. "Now let's move!" The class ran, being followed by Liz and the bus. Ralph suddenly shouted, "I SEE LIGHT UP AHEAD!" The class saw it too and slowed down. Arnold sped up. I've been waiting for this moment." He said before Wanda grabbed his arm, stopping him. "Stop trying to be edgy Arnold." She disgustedly told him.

Ralph kept running, Phoebe chasing after him to stop him. "WAIT RALPH! YOU MIGHT FALL OVER THE EDGE!" She alarmingly shouted. "THE EDGE OF WHAAAAAATTTT?" He shouted as he fell out of the jet and plummeted to the ground beneath him. "Hit it Liz!" Ms. Frizzle shouted. The bus' hood opened and a mechanical arm extended out of the jet and caught Ralph right before he hit the ground. The arm retracted and dropped Ralph at Ms. Frizzle feet before disappearing into the hood.

"Careful, Ralph. You don't want to fall out of the air intakes."

"Huh?" He asked brushing himself off. "The air intakes bring air into the jet. Do you think the air just entered through the tailpipe?" She asked. The class laughed at the ridiculous joke. "Ha. Very funny. Now can we pleas go see what's wrong with the other jet?" Ralph begged. The bus honked as it squeaked to a stop in front of the class. "Well, let's jet!" Ms. Frizzle announced as the doors opened. The class piled on board followed by the Friz. The lizard was last to jump on before being directed by the Friz to "hit it." The bus began to wiggle and wobble before spinning into a miniaturized jet. It took off through the air intakes, and over the heads of the mechanics working on the broken jet.

The jet flew into the tailpipe and landed. It rolled along using its rockets as the class pointed out the main functions. There are no holes in the tail pipe besides the necessary one." Keesha noted. "The turbine is nice and spinny." Phoebe added. "The combustions chambers are on fire!" Carlos joked. The bus suddenly lurched up, then around, and bounced up and down. "WHAT'S GOING ON?" The class fearfully cried.

"Well, class, I'd say we pinpointed the problem!" Ms. Frizzle calmly replied. "The rotary compressor's gone ka-flooey!" Phoebe shouted. "We need to fix this thing so the race isn't ruined! It's not a race without an air show!" Ralph announced, running to the front of the bus. "Ms. Frizzle, does the bus have a rotary compressor repairing button or lever?" He asked. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid not Ralph…but it does have a spare rotary compressor in a compartment on the side door, and since it's magic, it'll just take the place of the other one! The challenge is getting the poor thing out." Ms. Frizzle opened the door. "Go forth, my class, and mend!" The class ran out at her command and were instantly sent up. "WHOA! This is what you felt, Carlos?" Keesha asked. "This does not feel good!" D.A. said spinning by. "Come on, you guys! We have to get to the compartment!" Ralph tried swimming to the bus, but was caught in the draft. The other students tried their luck, but no avail. "How about we try what we did when we had to pick the bus up from the magnetite?"

"Are you suggesting we become human magnets? We'd cling to the wall!" Carlos protested. "Not human magnets, but let's link up again!" Wanda said. "What are you guys talking about?" Phoebe asked. "You weren't with us back then, Phoebe. We had a Jyoti back then." Tim told her, grabbing her foot.

What she hadn't realized is that everyone had linked up already, and it was up to her to grab the new rotary compressor. "Me?! I'm not strong!" The bus winked at her to settle her nerves and it calmed her a bit. She began swimming towards the bus, and was almost sent into the air, but Tim gripped her ankle tightly. "I gotcha!" He yelled. Phoebe floated down and pressed a hidden button that opened the compartment. She grabbed the folded rotary compressor and pulled it out and threw it into the air. It latched onto the old one and the class fell to the ground. "Oof!" The class shouted as they hit the ground. "We did it!" Arnold announced. Then the class broke out into cheers. "Yay! We did it!" Someone shouted. "We fixed the jet!" Another student cried. Suddenly, the jet's engine began working. "What's going on?" The class asked in unison, falling to the ground again. Ms. Frizzle leaned out of the window on her side and exclaimed, "I believe they found out the jet's fixed! We're on our way out! Back to the bus everyone!"

As the students boarded the bus, Ms. Frizzle shut the compartment and the doors. That's when the bus floated out of the jet through the air intakes. "I guess you could call those air outtakes!" Carlos joked. "Carlos!" The class groaned. Ms. Frizzle pressed a button on the dashboard and set the shrinkerscope. The bus began to whirl before stopping as a fully sized jet. It was now a part of the air show, flying at blistering speed alongside the real jets. "WOW! I've always wanted to be in the air show!" Ralph exclaimed happily.

"Well, Ralph, would you like to steer for a bit?" Ms. Frizzle asked, standing up. "WOULD I EVER?" Ralph shouted, transporting himself into the driver's seat. "Seatbelts everyone!" He shouted. He spun the bus upside down and did loop-de-loops. The bus did so many tricks, the people in the stands were mesmerized by the sight in front of them. The bus kept flying past the stadium and turned back into a bus again in the parking lot. "That was amazing, Ms. Frizzle!" Ralph told her. "I can't believe I was in a real freaking' air show!"

"I hope you enjoyed it, Ralph. Now, let's go back to school. It's time for 6th period, everyone. Ms. Frizzle took the driver's seat back and the bus exited the parking lot and back to the school down the road.

All around the world, phones were ringing.

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

"This is the Magic School Bus, producer speaking." The woman answered. "Hi, I'm studying all about jets so I can impress my dad who works in the Air Force! Can you quiz me?" The kid asked. "No problem. Why do jets make sonic booms?" The producer asked taking her toy jet away from Liz. "That's easy! Sonic booms are created when an objects is faster than the speed of sound, and jets are really fast. If you're sitting in your backyard and a jet flies by, the sound waves won't get to your house until five minutes later!" The kid exclaimed. "Very good. I'm impressed." The producer praised.

"Next!" The kid ordered. "True or false: The highest a jet can go so far is 5,600 kilometers per hour." The producer quizzed. Chip had snuck in by now and was using his tail to snatch the jet from the producer who yanked it away. "False. That's actually not that far away." The kid said. "Okay, back up question, how fast can a jet reach?" The producer asked. "7,200 kilometers per hour."

"You're good, kid. You want me to ask you another one, don't you?" She grinned before being knocked off her balance by Chip and Liz. They grabbed her jet and ran out the door. "No, thanks! Sounds like you got to jet. Bye!" The kid said, ending the conversation.


	8. The Magic School Bus and the Holidays

**I figured with Christmas on Monday, Kwanzaa on Tuesday, and Hanukkah having finished already, I'd do a holiday special for all of us out there. But to read this chapter, I have one rule: I don't want to find any type of hate in the review section or any arguments of creationism. This is all for fun, so let's enjoy it. I wrote this really late, and I barely understand anything I "learned" so everything I just regurgitated from Google may be 100% incorrect. Also, it's late.**

The class of Mr. Frizzle were chatting and waiting for the flamboyant entrance of their teacher when Arnold noticed a menorah, a Christmas tree, and various assortments of items on Mr. Frizzle's desk in the back. "Hey guys? What's going on?" Arnold asked, nervously. "Do I really want to know?" He asked.

"You wouldn't want to miss it for the world, Arnold."

The class turned around, now searching for the voice of Mr. Frizzle. The angel on top of the Christmas tree began to wobble before jumping off and growing into a Mr. Frizzle. "Well, hey there, class." He greeted. "Hey, Mr. Frizzle." He stepped to the front of the classroom to the chalkboard and faed the class seriously. He wore another suit, this one more dazzling than the previous ones. He was wearing all white and an incandescent glow was clear enough to see from Mrs. Reede's room across the hall. ON the back of his blazer was a Christmas tree, illuminating was the vine of lights that wrapped around it. Although they were just design, they still moved in a swirl, like Ms. Frizzle's clothes moved. On his chest was a menorah with the lighted candle fire blazing. His pant legs were sporting seven candles each. His pins were a star, another menorah, and a mkeka. They seemed to illuminate with excitement, as did Mr. Frizzle's eyes.

The class' pet squirrel hopped onto Mr. Frizzle's shoulder, sporting a Santa hat. "Class, today, since the holidays are about to wrap up, we're going on a field trip to respect the three famous holidays. Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas. But, I don't want any arguments on anything we cover and what each person believes in. Okay?" He asked. The class nodded. "To the bus!" He cheerfully shouted. The class rose from their seats and dashed out the doors to the bright yellow bus. It had a santa hat on it's hood and was decorated with designs of different holidays. Ms. Frizzle and her class ran out after them and noticed the designs. The other class ignored it, but Ms. Frizzle whispered, "Be careful. My old class is a feisty group." She grinned and took the driver's seat of her own bus. The two teachers called out, "Bus, do your stuff!" In unison. Mr. Frizzle's class disappeared in a flash. The usual glow that surrounded the earth when they went back in time was only seen by the group within the bus. But to any bystanders, they vanished into thin air with a bright flash.

Ms. Frizzle's class took off into the sky as an eagle in search of a nearby jet.

The class of Mr. Frizzle watched as they plummeted into darkness. "What's going on?" One of the kids asked. "Quiet, class. We're about to witness the first ever kwanzaa." Mr. Frizzle shushed from the front. The class watched in anticipation, but fell into boredom. Mr. Frizzle noticed this and remarked, why don't you experience Kwanzaa for yourselves?" He asked. He typed in a command and pulled the lever and the students were sent into the bus windshield. It had become the Suppose-A-Tron again! "Class, welcome back to the Suppose-A-Tron. This time, you will be a part of Kwanzaa." Carlos raised his hand. "What if we don't celebrate Kwanzaa?" He asked. "Don't worry, Carlos. We're just doing this for education and fun. Now, let me explain everything they are doing. First of all, the first ever Kwanzaa was celebrated from December 26th, 1966 to January 1st, 1967." He explained. "So it comes after Christmas?" Wanda asked.

"Precisely." Mr. Frizzle answered. "Does anyone know what they are doing?" He asked pointing to the people in front of the students. Phoebe raised her hands. "I know! They are celebrating african culture and heritage!" She answered. "That's right! They celebrate by eating a feast from the 26th to the new year!" He told them. "A feast every day? I can get with that!" Ralph excitedly yelled. "But, Ralph, it's not just about the food." Mr. Frizzle explained. "RIght, it's about the principles" Phoebe told him. "What principles, Pheeb?" He asked.

"According to my research, there are seven main principles to Kwanzaa: Unity, Self Determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity, and Faith." Mr. Frizzle clapped his hands in delight! "Nice job, D.A. She's absolutely correct. Kwanzaa focuses on all of these and not only feasts, but exchanges gifts for the six days. Now, class, let's switch gears." Mr. Frizzle typed in a new command and pulled on the lever. The class was sent back to the present time, twenty minutes later, in fact, but they were still inside the miniature Suppose-A-Tron. "What are we doing now?" Carlos asked. "I don't know, but something smells like farm." Tim responded. "Well, class, I sent you into Christianity. Our next focus is Christmas! Christians believe that God impregnated a virgin named Mary though something called the Holy Spirit." He started.

"I know!" Keesha said. Everyone turned to her. "And then, when Mary was about to give birth to her child, whom she named Jesus, all the inns were taken. Her and her husband Joseph found their way to a manger." As Keesha explained the story of the birth of Jesus, the class were put into roles. Phoebe was a fake pregnant Mary, but to her it felt real, and Carlos became Joseph. They wore robes and their hair was now changed. Carlos' hair was longer and messier, whereas Phoebe's became shorter. Keesha continued the story, and the class transformed into animals. Arnold became a cow, D.A. a donkey, Tim, a sheep, Wanda split in three and became kings, and Keesha turned into two wolves that were originally meant to hunt down Jesus. Ralph turned into the baby and was put into the hay within the manger. As Keesha finished the story, Mr. Frizzle summarized. "To shorten the story, God had impregnated a woman named Mary who was a virgin and was to give birth to a baby named Jesus and Joseph would be her husband and the father of Jesus. Long story short, Jesus was really the son of God and was born on the 25th which is why people celebrate Christmas on the 25th of December. Oh, my!" Mr. Frizzle said. "What is it?" The class asked in unison. "We have less than five minutes to get back to school." He punched in an order and the world stopped and went dark grey.

"What did you do, Mr. Frizzle?" The only color remained on the bus and within it. "I froze time. No biggie. Now, let's talk about Hanukkah." The previous setting erased and the class was now back to normal within the Suppose-A-Tron. "Hanukkah h commemorates the rededication during the second century B.C. of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, where according to legend, Jews had risen up against their Greek-Syrian oppressors in the Maccabean Revolt." Mr. Frizzle told them. The class was placed in this situation in the Suppose-A-Tron and underwent the victory of the Jews. "Mr. Frizzle, why does Hanukkah happen on different days each year?" Arnold asked. "Hanukkah lasts for eight days and starts on the 25th of Kislev, the month in the Jewish calendar that happens at about the same time as December. Because the Jewish calendar is lunar AKA it uses the moon for its dates, Kislev can happen from late November to late December." Mr. Frizzle replied. "And I'll tell you one last thing before we go. If you didn't know, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days to mark the eight days the oil burned. People celebrate Hanukkah by lighting candles on a menorah. Each night, one more candle is lit. There are nine candle spaces on the menorah." The class was blasted out of the Suppose-A-Tron after Mr. Frizzle explained that last fact and began to appreciate the other holidays. Mr. Frizzle drove the bus back to the school, as the kids began to converse about a gift exchange for each holiday.

 **I got hit with fatigue out of nowhere so I'm sorry if this stinks. I really wanted to do something to commemorate the different holidays that there were in the...holidays. BUt I hope you all have a wonderful Christmuhanukkwanzaa (Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa) and a happy new year! I love you all!**


	9. The Magic School Bus Decides to Divide

When I learned this lesson in class, I realized that "Splits a Cell" would have been perfect for this chapter title. Oh, well. I hope you like it anyway.

Arnold and Carlos were arguing when they stepped last into Ms. Frizzle's class. "Can't you just accept that I'm taller than you?" Arnold angrily spat at Carlos. "No! I refuse to believe it! You did something that makes you look taller." Carlos argued. "Guys, calm down!" Phoebe pleaded softly. "Yeah, can you relax?" Tim asked sliding his arm around Phoebe. She blushed bright red. Suddenly, the model cell in the corner began to shake again. The class expected Ms. Frizzle to pop out of it, but to their shock, the cell split in two. And then again. And again. It continued dividing until the ceiling was covered in model cells. One of the tiles on the ceiling popped open and Ms. Frizzle escaped. "Good morning, class!" She cheerfully chorused. "Good Morning, Ms. Frizzle. Today she wore a yellow dress and the buttons and cuffs happened to be red. On the hem of her skirt, the embroidered DNA swirled around. On her chest, a blue cell was trying to split in two. "I'm sensing a lot of tension this morning. What's the problem?" She asked.

"Carlos can't handle the fact that I'm taller than him now!" Arnold yelled. "Ms. Frizzle, back in fourth grade, Arnold was at least four inches shorter than me! There is no way he's taller!" Carlos retorted. "No need to expedite the anger!" Ms. Frizzle told them. "Arnold, Carlos, I would like you to remove your shoes and stand back to back." The two removed their shoes and stood back to back, Arnold's heels touching Carlos'. Ms. Frizzle took her right hand and flattened it. She raised it to the top of Arnold's hair and moved it across as steadily as she could. As her hand glided forward, she sliced nothing but air.

"Arnold is taller than you, Carlos." The Friz announced. "What? I don't get it! What's so special about Arnold that makes him taller than me?" Carlos asked, as he reached for his sneakers. Ms. Frizzle's eyes twinkled and her earrings (which were a cell and just its nucleus within it) began to glow and incandescent illumination. "Well, there's a question we need to find the answer to. Let's make like a cell and split!" Ms. Frizzle announced, grabbing her keys and marching out the door. The class followed her, but Ms. Frizzle kept Arnold and Carlos behind. "Oh, no, you two stay here. We won't be very far and we won't be long either." Ms. Frizzle winked at them.

"Liz, you stay with them to keep everything under control." The lizard that was sitting on the desk saluted and hopped onto Arnold's shoulder. "We'll be in touch." Ms. Frizzle said, turning the smartboard into a two way communication system. She left the classroom and shut the door behind her. The two boys stood awkwardly before a bright yellow flash from outside caught their attention. A miniature yellow helicopter rapped on the window waiting to be let in. Liz scampered to the window and hastily opened it, letting in the class. "Ms. Frizzle? We're not doing what I think we're doing...are we?" Arnold cautiously asked.

"Oh, but we are, Arnold." Ms. Frizzle responded pulling hard on the steering wheel. The helicopter nosedived into one of Arnold's pores and transformed into a submarine as they snuck their way into a blood vessel. "Ms. Frizzle, what are we doing?" Ralph asked. "Well, does anyone remember what we did when Arnold turned orange?" She asked. "I do! We followed the orange stuff to Arnold's skin cells!" Phoebe announced. "Correct! But this time, we're learning about mitosis and not just about cells." The class within the bus and outside of it gave a confused look. "What does that mean?" Tim asked. "According to my research, mitosis is the division of cells." Ms. Frizzle clapped and turned back to the class. "Positively perplexing but you definitely popped the predicament! There are five stages to mitosis: Interphase, Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, and Telophase. What comes next is Cytokinesis." Ms. Frizzle pulled the bus out of the blood vessel and landed next to the skin tissue of Arnold. "I need three volunteers to stay within Arnold's cell." Ms. Frizzle said, putting the bus into park and facing the six students in the bus.

"I'll stay." Phoebe excitingly claimed. Tim hastily stood up and shouted, "I WILL! NO ONE ELSE SAY THEY WILL BECAUSE I WILL GO WITH PHOEBE!" Wanda stood up too and said, "Well, you weasley wimps, let's go!" Ms. Frizzle opened the bus doors and the three brave students came face to face with the tissue. "Um, Ms. Frizzle? How are we supposed to get in?" Phoebe asked. "Here, take these!" Ms. Frizzle said tossing each of them a Cytoplasm- Suspension Disruptor. It clung to their specially designed suits and wrapped around each of them. "I updated the original so that you all could go swimming in the cell for as long as necessary. Press the button once to activate. and twice to deactivate." The three students activated the disruptors and dove into the cell. Ms. Frizzle told them not to do anything until she got the other students within their cell. D.A., Keesha, and Ralph dove into one of Carlos' cells before the Friz alerted them. "Class, come in! It's Ms. Frizzle and the bus! Do you read me?" She asked as she exited Carlos' body. "We hear you loud and clear, Ms. Frizzle. What do you want us to do?" Keesha asked.

Ms. Frizzle turned the bus into an electronic pen and sat it next to the smartboard. "Alright class, the first phase of mitosis is Interphase. Noe, does everyone remember what the nucleus is?" She asked. "Yes." Everyone confirmed. "Well, the Cytoplasm- Suspension Disruptors also work with organelles. So, head on in within the nucleus, and this is where the fun of the trip will begin!" Ms. Frizzle announced doing flips within the bus. Carlos had his arms crossed in disbelief that Arnold could possibly be taller than him. "Carlos, it's not that big of a deal." Arnold told him. "It is a big deal." He joked, still angry. "I don't get what this field trip inside the nucleus will do." He told Ms. Frizzle. Liz shook her head and began to write on the smartboard. Her handwriting was surprisingly neat for a lizard. "Don't….doubt….the….Friz." Arnold read as Liz wrote the words. "Why, thank you, Liz." Ms. Frizzle smiled, wiping away a tear. The lizard gave a thumbs up to the fake pen and hopped onto the desk.

"Well, Ms. Frizzle hasn't let us down before." Wanda said, swimming for the nucleus. "Let's trust her." Keesha added, popping into the nucleus. The students within the nucleus were plunged into darkness and could not see anything. "Ms. Frizzle, it's a little dark in here." Tim said. "Press the button on the right side of your face mask." She aided. The students did so and the nucleus instantly lit up. "Woah! Look at that!" Ralph cried. "That's way cool!" D.A. said. "Is that my DNA? Carlos asked. "What's it doing?" He asked. "What happens in Interphase, Carlos!" Ms. Frizzle responded. "Mitosis is the division of cells, which means two more cells AKA the daughter cells are created and the parent cell will disappear." Carlos chuckled. "Whatever happened to the son cells?" He asked. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. Arnold noticed something. "It looks as if there are two sets of the same DNA." He told them, pointing. "Excellent observation, Arnold!"

"According to my research, Arnold, in Interphase, the cell spends 90% of its life going about regular cell activity. But, it is also preparing for mitosis by copying the DNA." Ms. Frizzle's smile widened. "But why?" Arnold asked. "Maybe half of the DNA gets sent to one daughter cell and the other half goes to the other?" Wanda guessed. "Absolutely, Wanda! The cell copies its DNA so that both cells have identical DNA. Imagine this: you're playing your favorite sport when you trip and get cut. Over time, it heals! That's mitosis at work! The vital function of mitosis is repairing body structures! But, if the DNA from the previous cell isn't copied, instead of you growing more skin, you might end up growing an eyeball, or an ear!" Ms. Frizzle told them.

"Boy, am I glad for mitosis! Wait, does mitosis also help you grow?" Carlos asked. "Exactly, Carlos! Mitosis is division of cells! The more cells you have, the more you grow! It's another one of the functions for mitosis." Carlos made a realization. "So that's why Arnold is taller than I am? He's experiencing more mitosis than me?" Carlos asked. "Precisely! It's all in the DNA! The DNA decides how fast you grow. It might be quick, slow, or average! But in the end, the DNA makes all the decisions." Ms. Frizzle explained. Carlos turned to Arnold and held out his hand. "I'm sorry for overreacting, Arn. You didn't deserve it. I just have to accept that it may take me awhile to grow." Arnold shook Carlos' hand and blushed. "Hold it!" Ralph yelled.

All attention was now on him. D.A., you said 90% of a cell's life is Interphase, right?" He asked. D.A. nodded. "Well, then, what about the last 10%? Something has to be going on then!" He said, watching the DNA copy itself. "Well, who said anything about this being the end of the trip? Ms. Frizzle asked smugly, a smirk on her face. "Yes!" most of the class shouted. Arnold groaned. "I knew I should have stayed home today. I hate being the field trip." He simply stated. "Class, what's happening now?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "Well, Ms. Frizzle, the DNA just turned into long thingies with something inside of it, and then they got glued together to make X's!" Phoebe answered.

"Ah, I see your playing with Prophase." Ms. Frizzle alliterated. "According to my research, those thingies within the long strands of DNA are protein, and the official name for it is a chromatid. But it doesn't say anything else, Ms. Frizzle!" D.A. worriedly told her. "And that's why I' m your teacher. Those X's are actually the chromatids being put together and the glue that holds them together is a centromere! The official name for that is a chromosome." She explained. D.A. was vigorously jotting notes. "Is that where the phrase 'blank chromosomes line up very nicely' comes from?" Arnold asked. "Exactly. See the way they're held together?" She asked. Arnold nodded. "Class, this is called Prophase." Suddenly, the kids within the cells began to freak out. "What's going on?!" Arnold nervously asked. "Something that looks like string is attacking us!" Tim shouted. "Ah, it seems that you are in Metaphase. That is when the chromosomes line up in the center of the cell, ready to be pulled apart. That string is called a spindle fiber. It originates from the centrioles within the nucleus and pull apart the DNA during Anaphase to two different parts of the cell." Ms. Frizzle explained.

Tim, Wanda, and Phoebe began to separate alongside the DNA. Tim quickly shifted over to Phoebe's nucleus and the two nuclei split apart. Phoebe and Tim were now alone, and Wanda was going solo. Although, inside Carlos' nucleus, the students stuck together. "Class, the process is almost complete! You're entering telophase where the cell begins to split in two. I'm assuming it's getting really tight within the nucleus right now?" Ms. Frizzle guessed. "YES! IT IS! YES!" The class groaned in agony. "Well, class, that is just the cell pulling apart to form new cells. And now, for the finishing touch, cytokinesis!" Ms. Frizzle announced cheerfully. "Is that when the cell pops apart?"

"Precisely, Ralph!" Ms. Frizzle praised.

The cell finally pinched down the center and popped out two new daughter cells within Arnold's body. The same happened for Carlos. "Well, look at that, class! You all underwent mitosis! I'm proud of you. Now, just come on out and let's go home." Ms. Frizzle told them, punching in buttons and messing with dials. As the students within Carlos' body exited the cell, a tiny submarine popped out in front of them. The door opened and they all piled on at Ms. Frizzle's request. The class escaped Carlos' body through his nose and hovered over to Arnold. The submarine traveled through his veins and squeezed its way through the blood vessel and greeted...two students? "Tim, Phoebe? Where's Wanda?" Ms. Frizzle asked.

"We don't know! She said something about more adventure and dove into Arnold's cell again." Phoebe worriedly said. "A lot of these cells have been going through mitosis! She could be in any one!" Tim said. It just now occured to Ms. Frizzle that Tim's arm was around Phoebe's shoulder and she was clutching him closely. This made her smirk and then she said, "No need to hurry to worry. We'll find Wanda in a pinch." Arnold began fidgeting. "Are you telling me Wanda is lost somewhere in my body?" Arnold said. "Nothing is lost until it's unable to be found!" Ms. Frizzle announced excitedly, ready for the thrill. "ALL ABOARD THE SEARCH AND FIND MOBILE!" Ms. Frizzle said pulling the lever in the front. The bus did another transformation. It turned back into a bus, but with a microphone and a satellite dish on its top. The two students stepped on and found the regular interior of the bus in front, but a spy station in the back, complete with listening stations and monitors. "One last thing!" Ms. Frizzle slowly said. As Carlos was transported into the bus, Liz fell to the ground next to Arnold. "Are you okay, Liz?" Arnold asked picking up his reptilian friend. "What happened to Carlos?" Arnold asked. "I'm in side the bus, Arn. I'm helping look for Wan." The bus took off inside of the cell and began jumping through all of the different ones in the tissue. "She could be anywhere, Ms. Frizzle!" Phoebe said. "There's so much skin out there, she could be in any one of those cells in the tissue!" Keesha added.

"Well, class, there's a possibility she might be stuck inside a nucleus! Or possibly she forgot to turn on her Cytoplasm-Suspension Disruptor. Wanda, come in, Wanda!" Ms. Frizzle called into the microphone that was tuned to the communication devices. "I'm here!" came the reply. "Wanda, could you pinpoint your location?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "Well, all I know is that I pressed a button on my suit and I'm on Arnold! Like I'm on the surface! I can see my desk and everything!" She told Ms. Frizzle. "Ah, I see you pressed the cell switcher button! You are now a cell on the surface of Arnold's skin. Only, you are too small to see. Are you more towards Arnold's jeans or near his hair?" Ms. Frizzle asked. "Hair." Wanda replied. "We're coming to get you, Wanda! You hang tight while we hang a right!" Ms. Frizzle said, turning the bus.

"Wanda is one of my skin cells. Unbelievable." Arnold groaned. Liz seemed sympathetic towards the boy, but she also seemed upset he was complaining on having one of his classmates experience a learning opportunity. Ms. Frizzle exited the bloodstream and wove her way through the fat cells blocking their way to the surface and popped onto Arnold's skin. "Wanda, can you shout out for me? We need to find you!" Ms. Frizzle said. Wanda cried out a screech and the bus headed for her direction. Arnold laughed, being tickled by the bus. "That tickles!" He told them. The bus screeched to a stop at the cell with black hair. The doors swung open and the class ran out to see their classmate sitting on the face of another classmate. "Wow, Wan, you're really a cell." Keesha said in awe.

"Can I sketch you? This is really cool!" Tim said. "Well, aren't you flat footed?" Carlos said making a crack at the fact she still had a body, just in the form of a cell. "CARLOS!" The class groaned. "Ms. Frizzle, can we all become cells?" Phoebe asked hopefully. "I'm sorry, Phoebe, but we don't have time for that. The period is almost over." Ms. Frizzle told her. "Pleeease?" Phoebe asked giving Ms. Frizzle the puppy-dog eyes. Ms. Frizzle gave in and said, "Alright! Go ahead class, give being a cell a whirl!" Ms. Frizzle encouraged. The class asked Wanda which button she pressed and she told them. The students pressed the button and turned into cells as well. "Wow! This is amazing!" Ralph said. "Yeah, but it also feels weird." Tim responded. "I like it." Phoebe said, and Tim instantly changed his mind. Suddenly D.A. began to split into two cells. "HEY! WHAT'S GOING ON?!" She asked. "Uh- oh, it looks like you all are undergoing mitosis! Quick! Press the button and get yourselves out of there!" Ms. Frizzle shouted. The class desperately tried to push their buttons but the force of mitosis was strong. Arnold could feel himself growing into new people. "GUYS! QUICK! MAKE IT STOP!" His voice distorted and he was beginning to sound like Keesha. Liz began to get frightened and jumped into one of Ms. Frizzle's drawers. Ms. Frizzle leapt into action and began pressing the students' button one by one. They were all transformed back into their original states and Arnold could relax, knowing he was back to normal...as normal as normal could get. "Class, it's time we head back now. That's enough adventure for today." The class boarded the bus and the doors slammed shut behind them. With the flip of a switch, the bus transformed into a helicopter and took off of Arnold's head.

It hovered in front of his face before taking off out the window. Ms. Frizzle swiftly swept the helicopter into landing and threw it in park. With the push of a button and a whirl of the shrinker scope, the bus twirled in an incredulously quick motion and stopped even quicker, appearing as if it had not left the parking lot all morning. Ms. Frizzle threw the bus doors open and the class escaped the vibrant and magical bus, waving goodbye as they entered the building. Carlos ran into the classroom and gave Arnold a bear hug. "I'm really sorry that I made such a big deal about you being taller than me. And I'm sorry that I almost ruined your entire body." He profusely apologized. Arnold wrapped his arms around Carlos and assured him, "It's fine. But next time, don't ask a stupid question in the presence of the Friz. Next time, she'll probably get us stuck inside an electron." Arnold joked.

"Don't worry about that for now, Arnold. That field trip isn't for another week." Ms. Frizzle told him. The class began to laugh until they noticed Ms. Frizzle wasn't laughing alongside them. "Um, guys...I think she's serious." Tim said. "We were frizzled today, but next week will be worse." He commented. The bell rang and Ms. Frizzle waved goodbye. "Ool, there's the bell! Goodbye, class! I'll see you tomorrow for our test on mitosis!" She announced as they began to leave. "HUH?" They all asked in unison. "I have to put something in the gradebook, don't I?" She asked before breaking into laughter.

All around the world, phones were ringing asking the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The female producer focused on her math sheet working diligently to solve the sheet of division problems. "Why are these so hard? I'm a grown woman!" Liz scampered into the room, followed by Chip and they began to play a game of tag. "Guys, not now! I'm-"

RING! RING! RING!

"-answering the phone." She sighed, putting down her pencil and answering the call. "Hello? Magic School Bus." She began. "Hiya!" It was a little girl- no more than six. "Are you the one in charge of the show I just watched on mitosis?" The producer chuckled at how she said mih-tosis instead of my-toe-sis. "Yes. I'm the producer. How can I help you?" She asked. "Well, for starters, how long does mitosis take?" The girl asked. "Two hours." The producer answered. The monitor in front of her illuminated showing the cell splitting in two with the students within it. "Yeah, but you guys had it happening in seconds! I don't like that!" The producer was almost sure that the girl was pouting on the other side of the line.

"Well, if we had done that, you would have spent the whole day watching our show, and don't you like other TV shows?" The producer asked. "I guess that's true. One more thing. What is a parent and daughter cell?" The girl asked. "Aren't you an inquisitive one?" The producer complimented. "I'm not in a quiz!" The girl whined. "No an inquisitive person is-nevermind. A parent cell is the original cell that hasn't gone through mitosis. The daughter cells are the ones that are the product of the original cell that went through mitosis." Liz and Chip spotted a sheet of paper and a pen sitting on the table. They eyed it before snatching it for themselves amd scampering off. "Speaking of product, that's the answer to multiplication and the opposite of multiplication is division, which is what I was doing before you called. Goodbye." The producer hung up and was exasperated when she realized her paper had been stolen. She groaned as the phone rang again. "Hello? Magic School Bus-producer speaking." The producer hastily spat out, looking for her paper. "Hi, I have a few questions on that mitosis episode." This time it sounded like a boy, thirteen maybe. "What about it?" The producer asked. "Well, that episode you did about Tim's mom having influenza? Don't prokaryotes divide too?" The producer sat up in her chair and leaned onto the table with her elbow and her hand to her cheek. "Well, yeah, but they have different reasons. Eukaryotes like Arnold and Carlos-" the monitor lit up again showing Arnold and Carlos standing awkwardly in the classroom "-divide for growth and repair. Meanwhile, prokaryotes, like the influenza cells-" the monitor changed to the episode of the students within the lamina propria alongside the prokaryotes "-divide to reproduce. Eukaryotes reproduce sexually, but prokaryotes asexually, which means they reproduce on their own. Thanks for calling." The producer coldly said, about to hang up, when the boy yelled, "WAIT! My dad has cancer. I looked it up after watching your episode on mitosis. You left out something important." The producer grew smug. "Oh, yeah? What?" She asked. "Cancer is uncontrollable mitosis. Cells dividing rapidly and uncontrollably." The producers grin faded. "Really? I didn't know that." She smiled at the fact the kid was so smart. "Anything else?" She asked. "Yeah. Why isn't Cytokinesis considered Telophase?" The child asked.

"Well, Telophase is when the cell begins to split by pulling apart, but Cytokinesis is the cell actually splitting in two. Scientifically, they are two different things. Thanks for calling. Stay curious." She said. She hung up and sighed, slumping back in her wheelie chair. The phone rung again and she angrily spat out, "MAGIC SCHOOL BUS!" As the kid responded, Liz and Chip entered with the math sheet of division problems. "Oh, well that's easy. The DNA decides what factor of the body gets what. You saw the DNA. All those rods are messages that decides everything about you." The monitor flashed again, displaying the students watching the DNA be copied. "Let's say one rod of your DNA is your hair is curly. Your friend's DNA might say that her hair is bobby or straight. It's all in the DNA. Scientists say that there are 20,000 differences between you and the person next to you."

"Wow! That's amazing!" The kid said. "Isn't it? Thanks for calling." The producer hung up and turned on the answering machine. Then, Liz and Chip, both wearing glasses and holding a calculator held up a finished paper of division. "Wow! This is great, you guys! I'm impressed!" The producer said staring at the sheet. The lizard and squirrel blushed.


	10. The Magic School Bus Train Games

I dunno why, I just felt like adding in a random character. It's not even an equal number of kids anymore! WHY DO I DO THIS? Anyway, enjoy, and try to see if you can find the JaidenAnimations reference in there. If if you don't watch her, you should. She's like awesome. How did this turn into a promo? I dunno. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

"Yeah, so my grandma and I are going to California this weekend. I just wish we didn't have to make so many stops." Keesha told Wanda entering the classroom. The class had already begun. Mr. Frizzle was sitting at the front of the room and the students were all in their seats. Keesha and Wanda eyed Mr. Frizzle before rushing to their seats. He wore his suit, but today it was green. The collar of his shirt remained white and the pin that was on it wrapped around the collar to the other side. It was a railroad track. On his sleeves, pant legs, and even on his chest were railroad tracks,wrapping around and going straight up. On his chest was a straight track going around the body. On the front was a modern day train. His socks were black and his shoes were green with tracks wrapping around the top as the design. If it were your first time meeting him, you'd think he were a train fanatic. "Keesha, Wanda, nice of you to join us. We were just talking about the transcontinental railroad." He said with a glimmer in his eye. Keesha was suddenly interested. "The transcontinental railroad?" She asked excitedly.

"Yes, I presume you're interested?" He guessed. "Am I ever!" She exclaimed. "My aunt is having her baby soon, and she wants us all to be there. But she lives in California. My grandma and I booked a plane, but the problem is there are so many stops on the way that we'll be there after the baby's born. I just wish there was an easier way." She explained. "Well, if you lived in the 1860's, you might have been able to get there without all the halts and hullabaloo." Mr. Frizzle told her. "What? I don't get it." Keesha bewilderedly told him. "Well, the transcontinental railroad was a railroad, obviously, that stretched across the U.S. It's main purpose was to transport goods, but it had other uses." He told them. "Wow!" Arnold exclaimed. "That sounds amazing!" D.A. leaned forward intrigued. "Can we see it?" Carlos asked. Mr. Frizzle took a deep breath in a made a funny face as he pretended to ponder. "Sure." he finally said. He picked up his keyes, and grabbed his satchel. The tiny squirrel within it popped his head out, utterly bewildered. "Come on, Chip! Wake up! We're going on a field trip!" The squirrel's eyes lit up and hopped onto the shoulder of the teacher. He stood at the window and hopped onto the sill. He jumped and clicked a button on his keys. The bus doors flung open and the students ran in, eager to go back in time. As he fell to the ground, the roof swung open, much like the doors and he did a somersault into the driver's seat. "Seatbelts, everyone!" He ordered from the front. The class clicked in their belts as Mr. Frizzle input an order to the bus. "Alright, Bus! Let's go!" He yelled pulling on the lever. The bus smiled as the familiar blue light began to swirl around them. The golden sparkles bade the bus sneeze. "Bless, you, Bus." Mr. Frizzle said rubbing it's dashboard gently.

The glowing light surrounded the Earth and blasted them into the time before the Transcontinental Railroad. "As you can see, I did not bring us into the time of the Railroad. I decided it would be best if we waited to do that. There is some pre-knowledge that is important to know. So, as I always say, let's get out there and LEARN!" he shouted. The class exited the bus and stood in the middle of nowhere. "Um, Mr. Frizzle?" Arnold asked. "Yes, what is it , Arnold?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "Won't we stick out like a sore thumb if we look like this?" He asked. "You're absolutely right!" Mr. Frizzle praised. He ran back onto the bus and put in another order. He ran off and said, "Hit it, Chip!" The squirrel grinned as he pulled the lever, sending the bus into a whirlwind of yellow. It surrounded the students as it spun and stopped in a puff of smoke. To anyone else, it would have looked like the bus had vanished, but it didn't. It was in disguise, just like the students and their teacher from the future. "Even back in old times, I'm still fashionable." Keesha snickered. "Mr. Frizzle, I hate to ask this question so late, but who is this?" Tim asked, pointing to the student next to him. Mr. Frizzle slapped his forehead. "Ohhh, I knew I was forgetting something. Class, this is Harris Dartagnan. He transferred from my third period into my eighth period, so he'll be with us for eighth period from now on, and he'll have Ms. Frizzle for third period, with you guys. The class eyed the student. He was now the tallest boy in the class, since he was taller than Arnold. He was originally he was wearing red sneakers with black lightning bolts on each, black shorts with plenty of pockets, a white T-Shirt with red sleeves, a shark tooth necklace he got from his dad in the military. He was larger than most and his brown hair was messy as it swayed in the wind. He had green eyes and a crooked nose. He waved. "Uh, hi…" He waved shyly. "Well, let's not dawdle. Follow me class." Mr. Frizzle said. The bus was wrapped around his wrist as a bracelet.

Mr. Frizzle led the class to a dock where there were men loading crates and boxes onto a boat. "What are they doing?" Phoebe asked. "Well, what did I say the railroad did before we went back in time?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "You said they deliver goods." Keesha answered. "Exactly. But with no trais to move land based across the U.S., they had to sail boats to other parts of the country. Does anyone see any possible cons to this?" He asked. "According to my research, approximately 1.4 billion pounds of pollution enters the ocean each year. I'd guess that without precautions to keep goods from falling off the boat, it could cause major damage to the ecosystem." D.A. guessed. "Excellent estimation!" Mr. Frizzle praised. "But weren't the first ever trains to be created locomotives?" Arnold asked. "Yes." Mr. Frizzle answered. "Well, locomotives create a lot of smoke when they move. Wouldn't they also create pollution? What's the big deal about locomotives that make people think they're better than ships. "An excellent question. Why don't we go find out?" Mr. Frizzle suggested jumping onto the boat. "Coming, class?" He asked. The students jumped onto the boat alongside their educator and hid from the sailors. "Alright bus. We sure are past our prime, let's pick up speed and speed up time!" He bus winked and the world suddenly began moving faster. "What's happening?"

"We're speeding through time. We're travelling 1800 miles to the other side of the U.S. to deliver these goods. And once they've been delivered…" Mr. Frizzle began. "It would take 1800 miles to come back." Harris recognized. "How long is that, D.A.?" He asked. D.A. began calculating and answered, "A really long time." She answered. "Well, it depends on the speed you maintain. The slower you sail, the longer it takes, the faster you sail, the shorter it takes. But unfortunately, this boat won't make it." Mr. Frizzle said. "WHAT?" The class screamed. "Didn't you notice the large gaping hole over there?" He asked. "No!" Arnold cried, terrified. "WE HAVE TO EVACUATE!" A sailor shouted. "I couldn't agree more." Mr. Frizzle chuckled before taking the bus of his wrist and throwing it into the ocean. "MR. FRIZZLE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The class screamed. "We're doomed!" Arnold sighed and fainted. "Not quite, Arnold-and he's out." The bus floated to the surface as a raft and the metallic stairs extended out to the students on the boat. The bus honked, eager to get them out of danger. "One by one, please." Mr. Frizzle ordered. "And, can someone toss Arnold's limp body into the raft?" He asked. The students took their seats in the raft and Harris chucked Arnold onto Ralph which almost made them to lose balance. "Careful!" Wanda scolded. "Water we going to do when the bus tips over?" Carlos joked. "CARLOS!" Mr. Frizzle jumped off the boat and tonto the raft. The bus steps retracted and the rotors began spinning. The raft took off toward the dock and began to move them forward in time. As they reached the dock, the bus became a bracelet again and they stepped onto the land. In the distance, they could see workers working on something on the ground, but they couldn't tell what. "What are they working on?" Carlos asked. "What time is it anyway? We went forward in time."

"Well, it's 1869, so we're watching them work on the railroad. Anyone want a closer look?" He asked. The class cheered and the bus turned into two locomotives. "We're currently invisible to the people over there. I'm sending half of you to the Union Pacific Railroad, and half of you will stay here with me, at the Central Pacific. "Huh?" The class asked in unison. "I thought we were learning about the Transcontinental Railroad, not oceans." Ralph said. "I think he is still talking about the Transcontinental Railroad, Ralph." Tim corrected. "According to my research, the Union Pacific and Central Pacific are what make up the Transcontinental Railroad. The Central Pacific went from West to East and the Union Pacific went East to West." D.A. informed. "Looks like your North Noggin is a knockin'." Mr. Frizzle complimented oddly. "I'll send Ralph, Arnold, D.A., and Tim to the Central Pacific, and the rest of you will stay with me." The four students entered the locomotive and shut the door. As soon as they did, it took off towards the West. "Alright. Let's get moving." Mr. Frizzle declared. The six of them entered the locomotive and it began chugging down the railroad. Alright class, what do you notice instantly?" Mr. Frizzle asked.

"Well, the ride from East to West is really bumpy, and it looks like the people working on it are struggling." Wanda pointed out. "Really? Over here, it's all flatland." Tim said through the communicator system. "Well, who said this was going to be easy?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "Next." He added. "I see a lot of African Americans over here." Phoebe pointed out. Keesha gave her a look. Tim winced from the other side. "Yeah, and Irish people too. I should know. I'm part Irish." he told them. "Yeah….we don't see anything like that over here. We have...other people working here. "What types of people?" mr. Frizzle asked with curiosity. Ralph gulped and Arnold tried to stop him but he managed to say, "Chinese." Wanda scrunched her nose and turned away from everyone else. Mr. Frizzle realized his mistake and tried to backpedal. "I-uh...Wanda...Keesha..I-didn't know. This was the school board's idea to teach this-I-" He stopped and moved on. "Well, uh, let's keep going forward in time. Another bright flash surrounded the globe. "Well, now that the railroad is built, what do you see is on it?" He asked. "Well, we have food going East." Arnold noted. "We're sending weaponry."Harris told them. "There are some cowboys sending cattle." D.A. said. "Cattle?" Everyone on the East train asked, and then laughed. Mr. Frizzle sighed, relieved. His hair could relax now. Every time he got nervous, his hair (on his head) would stand straight up. It fell back into its floppy place as the two locomotives slowed to a stop.

"Well,did everyone enjoy the trip?" he asked. The class cheered for him. "WE LOVE YOU MR. FRIZZLE!" "Okay, I get it. Thank you for your support. Let's go home." He input another demand and pulled the lever. The two locomotives came together and began to spin wildly as a golden flash with blue sparkles dazzled from it. Out popped the bus as the flash disappeared and the bus landed in the parking lot. The doors swung open and the class piled out and went back into the classroom. "Boy, I wish the railroad were still here today. It would be a lot less of a hassle for me and my grandma." Keesha said. "Oh it is, Keesha. It's still fully functional. It's made some improvements. I bet if you and your grandma tried now, you could get some tickets to go see your baby cousin born!" Keesha eyes gleamed. "Really?!" She cried. "Yes!" Mr. Frizzle said. "Go ahead, call her." Keesha hugged Mr. Frizzle and ran out of the classroom to get her phone.

All around the world phones were ringing. The children on the other line were asking the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer, Liz, and Chip were in the catering car of a train taking them back to the set. They had travelled for an emergency in one of their stations across the country, so they rushed over to help. "Yes, I'll have the four cheese pasta dish with sundried tomato sauce and basil." The producer told the waiter. "She'll have a squashed fly soup, hold the soup, extra flies." he said pointing at Liz. "And he'll have a bowl of giant nuts." He said, pointing at Chip. The waiter jotted down the order and said, "Gotcha. I'll be right back." The producer got a call as soon as the waiter left and answered. "Hello?" he asked. "Hi, I'm a History teacher, and you're about to get schooled! That lesson was missing major facts! How can you call yourself an educational program if you can't even get the lesson right?" He scolded. "Sir, please calm down. I'm in public. What's the problem?"

"Well for starters, you forgot all about the Civil War veterans." The teacher yelled. "...civil war...veterans?" The producer asked. "Yeah! It was not just the African Americans, Irish immigrants, and Chinese working! They also had Civil War veterans working on it too! And you also forgot that settlers used to use the railroad to move to a new place!"

"Well, sure, but we wanted to focus on the building of it, not the purposes." The producer explained. "Who cares? If you're going to talk about it, you need to keep it real. Just like the way they repaid the Chinese." The producer looked bewildered. "How did they-"

"-they gave them land close to the railroad so that they could make a living in America. The Chinese were trying to make a profit, but they also wanted to live somewhere new! Look, all I'm saying is I really like your show, but keep your facts straight, or else this won't be the last time you hear from me!" The history teacher hung up in a fit of rage. The producer had his moth hanging open. The waiter came back and simply stated, "I heard that guy from down in the kitchen car. This meal is on me if that's who you have to deal with every time you get a call." The waiter walked away before the producer could say anything. "Welp, free food makes it twenty times better, am I right guys? Dig in!"


	11. The Magic School Bus In the Night Time

Arnold trudged down the eerie hallway. It was so silent, it was lights were on, but he hated being alone. He needed someone with him, but to his dismay, no one. Ms. Frizzle had decided that the class field trip would be held at night for some reason. Arnold hated this. Field trips at night were the scariest: the haunted house, the bats, the desert. Arnold could list off many more. Like when they went in Carlos' marshmallow smoker? It was after school, and they were rehearsing for a school play when the Friz thought it would be a good idea to take a break and learn all about how marshmallow smokers work while they made yummy marshmallows. They were delicious, though. Arnold couldn't lie. Since this field trip would be at night, Ms. Frizzle had already taken the other students on the trip. "The more the merrier!" The Friz had said. "But sometimes, you have to slow down!" She added.

He opened the door and there was everyone. His class eagerly awaited the arrival of the Friz while chatting amongst themselves. "Why would Ms. Frizzle take us to the ocean at night?" Keesha asked. "It makes zero sense. We have to be going to the Sahara desert." She argued. "We already did a lesson on the dessert, Keesh, and it was sweet!" Carlos joked. "CARLOS!" Ralph turned around and stated, "I'm just saying that Ms. Frizzle might take us lower than the abyssopelagic zone and we could get stuck. An overnight trip would be a great cover for not returning until the next day."

"Guys, obviously she's taking us on a safari to see how animals behave at night, like hunting and whatnot." Harris said. "Can I say my idea?" Phoebe asked gently. "Sure, Phoebe. Go ahead." Tim accepted, wrapping his arm around her again. "Well, if she's taking us on a field trip at night, we obviously don't see these animals during the day which leaves one group: the nocturnal group. So, I've come to the conclusion that she has to be taking us on a field trip to see an animal that only is awake at night." The class was listening intently and nodded, agreeing with her ideas. "

"Yeah."

"That makes sense."

"That could work."

The arguments had become a mutual agreement between the class that the Friz was taking the class to see a nocturnal animal. But the agreement had started another argument. "She's obviously going to teach us about bats! We learned it ourselves, but she never got the chance to." Harris told Wanda. "No, racoons are easier to spot. She will definitely teach us about the wonderful world of these masked menaces." She alliterated in response like their teacher. Suddenly, a dark purple light emerged from the poster in the wall that no one could read. It was just scrawls. It looked like an animal had ruined it. Then, out popped the Friz. "Good evening, class!" She greeted. "Good evening, Ms. Frizzle!" The class responded. They noticed she was wearing a different dress from the morning. In the morning, she wore a yellow dress with the hem decorated with a desk and stick figures sitting behind it, indicating she was going to a meeting. But now, she wore a dark purple dress that was decorated with a fox and other night animals. There were wrapped owls hanging as her earrings plastered on her shoes. The chest had a crescent moon shining into the darkness on her shirt and on her sleeves were the silhouettes of humans. "I see that we're all here, and Harris, I hope you don't mind going on the same field trip twice?" She asked for confirmation. "No problem, Ms. Frizzle. "Fantastic!" She clapped her hands in delight. Her earrings illuminated violet and the drawing of leaves fell onto the designed owl who somehow managed to hoot. "Well, then, if everyone's ready, to the bus!" She announced. "Two by two please!" The class ran out in excitement, ready for a brand new field trip that would wow them. The bus doors opened, greeting them and the students' feet clanked against the metallic stairs. Arnold slid next to Harris and blushed. "Where do you think she's taking us?" He asked.

I know already. I don't want to ruin your field trip!" Harris told him. "But, you're gonna love it!" Arnold gave a fake thumbs up and turned from Harris. "Are you okay?" He asked. "It's just...I love Ms. Frizzle's field trips, but sometimes they get a little...wild, and I kinda lose it. I feel like I'm holding the group back, y'know?" Harris frowned at the student's heavy heart. "Arnold…" he began. "Alright, everyone! Who's ready to fly to our field trip?" The teacher asked, a lizard perched on her shoulder. The class, except Arnold and Harris cheered. Ms. Frizzle threw the bus into drive and pulled out of the parking lot. As she drove, the students in the back buckled in. Wanda, who was sitting next to Tim, bobbed in her seat. "I _love_ overnight field trips! They're so eerie and mysterious and they make me anxious and my hair stands in edge! It's the best feeling in the world!" She told him. "I hear you, Wan. Can I tell you a secret?" He asked. Wanda nodded, leaning in to hear him better. "Sometimes, I like to do freaky things or watch something freaky for inspiration for my sketches. That's why I love overnight field trips. You already don't know what's going to happen with the Friz, but night adds a whole new aspect to it!" He confided in her. Wanda gasped and asked. "Can I see some?" Tim nodded and proceeded to show her the drawing he made when they were in the haunted house. He imagined what could have made the nerve-wracking noise and sketched out a disturbing monster that made his mom shriek and throw his sketchbook across the dining room hall when she saw it. He inked it and colored it in and considered it finished. "I haven't made it digital yet. But I will, and then I'll email it to my inspiration and see what he thinks." Tim explained. "Tim, that's really good. I wish I could draw like that. Can you tutor me?" Wanda asked. Tim nodded and said, "Sure! When and where?"

The two friends began making plans on how the meetups would work while Harris tried to cheer up Arnold. "Arnold, you're a great guy! These field trips are dangerous sometimes-er-a lot of the time and you have the right to feel scared. Just don't let it prevent you from doing amazing things. Because, you're an amazing guy." Arnold began to feel better and lightly punched Harris. "Thanks, Harris." He mumbled.

The low grumble of the bus as they drove down the road began to drive Carlos insane. "Ms. Frizzle, wherever we're going is taking an awful long time to get there! It's been half an hour." e shouted from the back. He unbuckled and walked up to the aisle and faced his teacher. "Can't we fly instead?" He asked. "Well, Carlos, what a provocative idea." Ms. Frizzle complimented. "Take your seat and get buckled. We're going up!" She shouted. Carlos rushed to the back of the bus and clicked his seatbelt into place. "Okay, bus, do your stuff!" She shouted as she pressed a button. The bus began to stretch before it revolved swiftly and metamorphosed into a helicopter. The rotors were rotating before the bus stopped spinning and the helicopter ascended into flight. The interior changed, too. The walls were lined with some sort of soft fabric and the seats were now plane seats. Ms. Frizzle took out her microphone and announced, "Hello, this is your pilot Valerie Felicity Frizzle; I would like to inform you that now that we are in flight, our trip into the deep forest will soon take place. Another twenty minutes and we will be arriving." She placed the microphone back into its slot and continued piloting the bus-copter alongside her favorite lizard. "Our trip to the forest? What is she talking about?" Keesha asked Ralphie who was across the aisle. He shrugged.

The bus-copter soared over the town and was headed in the opposite direction of the mountains. It became oddly silent within the bus-copter, but Ms. Frizzle hummed to herself nonetheless. Her eyes caught sight of a patch of trees down below and her eyes twinkled eagerly. "Liz…" She whispered. The lizard nodded taking her index and middle finger of her foot and tapped her forehead knowingly. The two slowly pulled on their steering wheels and the bus-copter began to descend cautiously into an empty patch of the forest. The bus-copter's wheels slowed to a stop on the ground and the rotors stopped spinning. "Wow!" The class was in awe at the beauty of the forest in the night. "I can't wait to explore." Wanda muttered. "Not yet, Wanda. Everyone, put on your forest night exploration gear, and don't forget the backpacks and flashlight helmets. They might just come in handy." Ms. Frizzle pressed a button on the dashboard and sweatpants, sweaters, boots, gloves, flashlight helmets, and multiple backpacks rained from the roof of the bus. The students put them on in their respective styles and the bus-copter's door slid open and the class exited the bus. The sight from outside the bus was breathtaking. The moon glistened brightly, irradiating the ground in front of them. The trees were like dark figures, but they added a mysterious aesthetic to the wildlife. The chirps and squeaks of critters came from all directions. It was peaceful. It wasn't Tim's usual drawing habitat, but it sure was inspiring. "Now, class, we're not going to learn anything by standing here and not doing anything, so let's get out there and explore!" She shouted. "Two by two, please." She ordered sweetly. The class switched on the flashlights in their helmets and began marching into the night, two by two.

"So, Ms. Frizzle, what's the point of this field trip anyway?" D.A. asled. "Simple D.A. We're studying nocturnal animals." Ms. Frizzle answered. "Nocturnal animals?" The class asked in unison. "Animals that only come out at night? Why them?" Ralph asked. "Why not them, Ralph? Us humans see the diurnal animals, but we never stop to think about our mysterious mammals." She told them. "Does diurnal mean during the day?" Wanda asked. "Of course it does, Wanda." Ms. Frizzle applauded. "So where are these nocturnal animals? I don't see them. Arnold complained. Ms. Frizzle grinned and Arnold realized his mistake and began to plead. "No, wait-please! I know something weird is about to happen!" "Arnold, there's nothing weird about learning something new." Ms. Frizzle responded, pulling out the PortaShrinker. "Say hoot!" She ordered grinning ear to ear. "Hoot!" The class cheered ecstatically. The PortaShrinker whirred to life and a dazzling beam emerged from the barrel of the ray gun. It surrounded the students and their educator and shrunk them down to the size of a very tall grass leaf sheath. "I can't believe it." Arnold whined. Harris gave him a hug and Arnold pushed him off. "I don't need pity." he protested.

"That's _pity_ good for you, Arn. Now let's start our _small_ expedition already." Carlos joked. "CARLOS!" Suddenly, clouds swirled in front of the moon and blocked out the light from in front of the miniature class. "Hey! What gives?" D.A. asked, utterly upset. "I know what I'm giving you: a tip! I suggest you put on your Night-Vision Glasses. Less, clunky, just as effective, and very fashionable." The Friz said, posing with her glasses on. "You can find them in your backpack." She instructed. The class unzipped their bags and pulled out the glasses. Sticking them on their heads, their eyes bulged. Surrounding them were a number of animals running, flying, slithering, you name it! The forest was live and it petrified the didn't realize that they were so close to these giant _and dangerous_ animals. They turned and ran, fearing for their lives. "Class, can I _grass_ where are you going? Don't you want to stay and explore?" The class continued running, ignoring her questions and headed for the bus. But, to their dismay, it was too tall for them to reach and get on to.

 _SSS._

"RALPH!" Wanda derided. "It wasn't me!" He protested.

 _SSSSS._ The noise was getting louder. The class turned and came face to face with a large snake. Much larger than the last time they had come to the forest. Granted, it was the rainforest and they hadn't seen and snakes, BUT THAT IS BEYOND THE POINT! The point is, they were on the verge of peeing themselves when the bus-copet honked and blasted the students with a beam of light. Part of the class was transformed into animals. Phoebe and Ralph turned into owls, Carlos and Keesha changed to mice, Arnold and Harris to snakes, Wanda and D.A. turned into hawks, and Tim remained as he was. The snake was scared off by the light and slithered away in fear. The class took a look at themselves and said, "What?" Ms. Frizzle walked over and said, "Well, would you look at that? You all are Strigiformes, Serpentes, Buteo jamaicensis, Mus, and a homosapien." The class ogled her, lost on everything she had just said. She chuckled and said, "Owls, snakes, red tailed hawks, mice, and one human."

"OHHH!" The class realized. "Class, we're learning about nocturnal animals, but let's start with how they're all connected." The class shrugged and Ms. Frizzle responded, "If you can, press the button on your mask. If you can't, have someone help you and you'll find out why I chose these animals." The class did so and a beam of light connected from the ground, to the mice, to the snakes, to both the owls and hawks, and up to Tim. "Woah! I'm feeling _lightheaded_." Carlos joked. "CARLOS." "I wonder what this represents Phoebe wondered aloud. "Does anyone feel a little...hungry?" Arnold asked. "Yeah. I'm starving." Ralph groaned. "A burger would be good. Or maybe a mouse sandwich? Oh, yeah...that would hit the spot fourteen times." Harris said hungrily, licking his lips with his long snake tongue. Liz backed up a bit and hid behind Ms. Frizzle. "Hey! I don't like the sound of that! Carlos and I are mice! You wouldn't eat us, would you?" Keesha asked. "I dunno, you're looking pretty tasty." Harris responded. "First of all, I'm always looking tasty. Second of all, I don't appreciate that you would stoop down to cannibalism for a cheap meal." Keesha replied. "I can't be a cannibal if we're not the same species. You're a mice, I'm a snake. Snakes eat mice."

"Yeah and owls eat snakes." Ralph told him, towering over the reptile. Liz silently shrieked and ran to the bus where she fainted. "But humans eat owls." Tim pointed out. "We're all still people, here, guys." Keesha said. "Yeah," Phoebe agreed. "Why can't we just be peaceful to each other?" She asked. "Because in this world, Phoebe, it's either eat, or be eaten." Ms. Frizzle said in a pirate's voice. "Wait a minute...eat...animals...humans...connecting bars! I get it! We're all a part of the food chain!" D.A. concluded. "Dynamic deduction, D.A.! And I meant the eat or be eaten part. We all eat each other to survive." "But why is the chain seeping into the ground?" Carlos asked. "And where do hawks fit in?" Wanda asked. "Well, mice eat grass. Grass is almost always at the bottom of every single food chain and hawks serve the same purpose as owls: eating snakes!" Ms. Frizzle explained. "Well, let's agree to not each other. We'll wait until we can eat some human food." D.A. suggested. "Agreed." Most of the class said in unison. "Except for Keesha and Carlos. You guys are omnivores, meaning you can eat plants."

"Works for me!" Carlos said, bending over to pick up a bunch of seeds that were planted in the ground. Keesha lifted him by the tail into the air. Carlos squirmed in her paw and shouted protests but Keesha had a tight grip. "Hell no, D.A. It's not fair if you guys have to starve and we get to eat. We'll wait, too. RIGHT CARLOS?" Keesha asked, frightening the boy. "Yeah, whatever, Keesh." He said crossing his arms. Keesha let go of his tail and he hit his head on the ground. "This way, class. We're going to study nocturnal behavior." Ms. Frizzle said, leading the group (except Carlos who was rubbing his head) away from the bus. "Hey wait up!" Carlos shouted running after the group. "Keesha, why'd you _food chain_ me up back there?" He asked. "CARLOS. STOP." The class yelled. Even Harris was doing it now. He was loving h=it earlier, but was this all Carlos did? He had just got his answer. "Let's begin with the obvious facts. "Class, you can take off your glasses now."

The students did so and could still see, besides Tim. "I don't get it, Ms. Frizzle. Bats were nocturnal, but they couldn't see. Why can we?" Phoebe asked. "I can't see." Tim noted. "Well, Phoebe, bats use echolocation to see. Bats have horrible eyes, but their ears are phenomenal. But these animals have a pathway through which rods connect to the same dark circuits used by cones, which allows them better perception of edges, movement, and silhouettes in dim light. Even the nuclei of the rod cells are adapted for night vision." The class was still confused but went on with it.

Arnold's stomach growled loudly. "Ms. Frizzle, I'm really hungry. Isn't there anything we can eat?" he asked. "Alright Arnold. Everyone, think of mice!" Ms. Frizzle ordered. The class shut their eyes tightly and when they opened their eyes, they had all been transformed into mice. "Wow! This is amazing!" Ms. Frizzle had also turned into a mouse. "Well, class, I'd say it's time for a midnight snack! Who agrees?" She asked. Everyone cheered and bent over to begin eating but then froze and then rose again. "Ms. Frizzle? What do us mice eat anyway?" Ralph asked. "Well, they're omnivores, so they eat just about anything; plants or animals. Sometimes, they'll eat each other." She warned spookily. The class gulped and looked at each other. "But, they rely mostly on smell and feel. As I always say, the nose _knows_." She winked. "Well, I do feel kind of blind." Keesha said. "I've been listening to the conversation and following our voices." Phoebe added. "Well, why don't you try going local? Acting like mice? As my old friend Julius Cheeser used to say, ' _When you're in the mouse's shoes, do as the mouse would.'_ He was really weird." She informed. "Now I know where she gets it from." Arnold whispered to the group. Ms. Frizzle pretended not to notice Arnold's comment and said, "Ah, look, here come some real mice now!" The class turned their attention to the furry creatures scurrying towards them. They did not look friendly. They began to push and bite the class.

"OW! That hurts!"

"Stop it!

The class scurried away and Ms. Frizzle followed them. "What was that for?" Tim asked. "They didn't seem very nice. They pushed us out." Phoebe noted sadly. "According to myresearch, mice are very territorial creatures." D.A. explained. "But it doesn't say why." Suddenly the slithering noise came back. "Oh, no! It's that snake again!" Harris shouted. "Run!" Carlos warned. "How does it keep finding us?" Someone asked. "Huh, I dunno. Let's find out!" The Friz suggested. "Think snake, everybody!" She ordered. The class shut their eyes tight and when they opened them, they had been turned into snakes. The light had scared off the snake yet again. Their bodies slithered sneakily along the grass as they moved along. "Woah! I'm a snake again!" Keesha cried. "Again?" Harris asked Arnold. "Long story from elementary school." Arnold replied. "I feel great! Not too hot, not too cold. I'm just the right temperature." Carlos happily exclaimed. "But I'm still hungry. We never got our midnight snack." Ralph groaned. "Then, let's take action and get those pushy mice! Snakes eat mice don't they?" Wanda said, pugnaciously. "Yeah!" "Let's get them!" The class slithered quickly towards the mice they had previously left when they were mice. "Remember us?" Ralph asked. They slithered into a bright area as they got closer to their prey. "Good. I can't wait to see their faces when I eat them." He said closing in. He inched closer and closer until..

SQUAWK!

A hawk was soaring above Ralph; and he looked hungry! He swooped down and his talons wrapped around Ralph like nothing and the hawk carried the innocent boy away. "RALPH!" The class shrieked. "I THINK I'M GONNA BE SIIIIIIIICK!" He cried as he was hauled away by the bird.

-|o|=||=|o|-

"OH, BAD, OH, BAD, OH, BAD, BAD, BAD!" Keesha hissed.

"WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO? WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO? WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?! That hawk with devour Ralph alive if we don't save him!" Wanda cried. "Well, then, what are we waiting for? Let's soar gracefully and turn our heads the other way!" Ms. Frizzle cheerfully exclaimed. "THINK OWL EVERYONE!" Ms. Frizzle declared. The class shut their eyes and within seconds they were transformed into owls. "Let's fly!" Harris declared. The class soared into the air and hovered for a moment before deciding on a direction to fly in. They figured if they all went to one place at one time, they might find Ralph and could do multiple attacks to the hawk. "Don't owls eat snakes? We're helping our worst enemy." Carlos joked. "Not the time, Carlos. We have to find Ralphie! But how?"

"We're owls now! Do as the owls do! Use your instinct!" Ms. Frizzle encouraged. "According to my research, which is very hard to read while flying, it says that owls are bonded to others from birth!" D.A. told everyone. "I wonder if since we've been with Ralphie so much, we'll be able to find him!" Arnold wondered aloud. "One way to find out! Trust your instincts everyone and fly! Harris, you just fly with us." Ms. Frizzle told him. The student made a U-Turn and went in the opposite direction. Doubt began to fill within the students, but it actually worked! They found the hawks nest and Ralph avoiding the pecks that the hawk threw at him. "Uh-oh! Ralph looks dizzy!" Harris said. "We have to help him!" Wanda said. "But how?" She asked. "Try this!" Ms. Frizzle suggested diving for the hawk. She knocked into it, stunning it for a moment, but then it continued trying to peck at Ralph. "Let's go!" The class, except for Arnold, dove down and began swatting at the hawk. "I knew I should have stayed home tonight." He muttered. He nosedived and swooped down, scooping up Ralph in the process. The hawk became so stunned that he fell out of his tree, bringing victory to the class. The owls (and snake) descended to the ground and began talking amongst themselves.

"Wow! What an adventure!' Wanda praised.

"That was crazy." Ralph shuddered.

"We went through the entire land food chain in less than a night!" Tim said. "Well, not the entire food chain." Ms. Frizzle interjected. "Right! What's a food chain without humans at the top?" Tim realized. The class was whirled into their original forms and heights. "That was awesome! Can we do it again, next week Ms. Frizzle?" Wanda asked. Arnold gestured for her to stop talking and to cut it but she ignored him. "We can't, unfortunately. I have something else planned. But don't worry. We'll be back to the forest another day. Back on the bus everyone!" The class turned to get on the bus, but to their shock, it wasn't there. "Where's our bus?" They asked. "We're stuck in the forest without a ride back?" Phoebe asked, trembling. Tim held her close.

The class began to panic, making an unnecessary commotion. "Not to worry, class." Ms. Frizzle whistled. The bus did not come. "Well, that's new. Well, still not to worry. When in doubt, figure it out! But do so like animals!" Ms. Frizzle did her magic and the class was transformed into a group of mice. "Feel and smell, everyone! It's the first step!" The class spread out in different directions and searching for the bus when Harris cried, "I smell it by over there!" Ms. Frizzle did her magic again and the class slithered in the direction of the smell. On their way, they passed a group of real mice, and Ralph swallowed one. "Not bad." He said licking his lips. The class was suddenly turned into owls and took off into the sky. "TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS! LOOK FOR THE BUS!" The group of owls took off in one direction and then nosedived to the yellow helicopter sitting in the patch they began with. The bus popped open one eye, startled awake to the cheering of eighth graders. "WE DID IT! WE FOUND THE BUS!" Ms. Frizzle turned the group back into humans and jumped into the driver's seat. She pulled the lever in the center aisle and the bus turned into one giant tent in the center of nine little tents; one for each student. "It's still an overnight trip." She said. "MS. FRIZZLE." The class laughed..

All around the world, phones were ringing. Children were listening closely and asked the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer wheeled the cages on he cart out of the building to find that there were only stair and no ramps. "Aw, man. Really?" He was trying to return the animals the show used back to the person that lended them for the episode, but he was all the way across the parking lot. The producer was about to try and get the front wheels onto the first step when his phone rang. He was startled and fell to the ground.

 _CLANG!_

The producer watched as the animals were flung from their cages into the air. "NO! COME BACK!" He shouted. The phone rang again and this time he answered. "Magic School bus. Producer speaking. "I'm from the S.A.D.C.T. committee and, oh boy, I hope you're sitting down." The angry child said. The producer was still laying on the ground. "I guess you could say that. Go ahead."

"If you didn't know S.A.D.C.T. stands for Snakes Are Deserving Creatures Too and we have some complaints. First of all, all you did was show that snakes eat nothing but mice, when in fact that's not true!" The child told him. "That's right. Snakes actually eat a ton more animals than mice. It's just that mice are somewhat easier to catch. Snakes eat rodents, rabbits, birds, some eat insects and frogs and fish, and even earthworms!" The producer explained. "Yes I know about all of this. Now what about venom? You didn't talk at all about that." The kid criticized. The producer stood up and began pacing. "Well, yes. There are two large sacs behind the eyes of the snake that produce venom. They are connected to the mouth of the snake and can spit it out as a defense mechanism. But we wanted to focus on the land food chain. On our first show, The Magic School Bus, we focused on the water food chain and the land one barely made a cameo. But here, on the Magic School bus Hons Once More, we just wanted to clarify the food chain."

The indignant child on the other end of the line said, "But the venom aids the snake for food! The venom is their saliva and it is for the immobilization and digestion of their prey! You guys don't have any facts straight! I could sue this show for improper educating!" The child angrily yelled. "You would sue a multimillion corporation over forgetting little details? Who's going to get the better lawyer: angry little kid or multimillion corporation?" The kid was silent on the other side. "Okay, nevermind. I lost my temper a bit there." The producer laughed. "You're not the first. And don't forget that we only have half an hour to explain everything. If we had more time, we would, but it's not that simple." The producer explained. "I guess that makes sense. Bye! I guess..." The phone line went dead. The producer stopped pacing. Liz suddenly ran out and pointed to the burly man who was aggravated with him. "You lost my animals, you pay for new ones. That was the deal. So, where are my animals?" The producer gulped. "Right now, I feel like _I'm_ at the bottom of the food chain." He whimpered.


	12. The Magic School Bus Makes A Squirt

Okay, let me explain why this is two Science back to back. Since Ms. Frizzle took the kids on a field trip after school, they went on their field trip with Mr. Frizzle on the transcontinental railroad before they went on their field trip to learn about the land food chain (yes, that's what the episode was about). So, if we're doing this like it's daily field trips, Ms. Frizzle comes next AND THEN it's Mr. Frizzle. Just wanted to point that out.

Ralph bumped on the doorway as he entered the classroom, eyes glued to his phone. His headphones were plugged in, and he had them at max volume. Students had waved and said hi, but he was preoccupied with whatever was on his screen. Phoebe, who was behind the brown haired boy, tapped his shoulder. He paused what he was watching and took off his headphones. "What's up, Pheebs? I'm kinda busy." He snapped. The soft girl retracted her hand and asked, "Is it a good movie?" She asked. "Oh, yeah! Really good! It's about this giant octopus that terrorizes the U.S." He explained. Phoebe squeaked and her face morphed into fear. "I don't like scary movies. They always end up scaring me somehow!" She whimpered. "Don't worry, Pheeb." Arnold said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "It's not real. And if it is, we'll just came out with the Frizzles." Arnold joked. That relaxed Phoebe and she laughed. Keesha walked over.

"Well, I think that's completely unrealistic. Remember the bats? You thought they were bloodthirsty vampires because of a comic book you read and they turned out to be the complete opposite. Let's not jump to any hasty conclusions here. Octopi are just trying to live life too, you know." She told him. "I know that, Keesh. But they're still dangerous. Have you never seen the videos of killer octopuses trying to attack people?" He asked her. "Octopi." Keesha corrected. "Octopuses." Ralph argued. "Octopi!" Keesha angrily shouted. "According to my research, both are sort of correct. The proper term is latin and the plural is octopodes. But it's so unused, people immediately believe it's octopi or octopuses." D.A. settled the argument.

"Thanks, Dorothy Ann. But still, Ralph. Those videos are complete B.S. They're either staged or animated to make the octopi-octopodes look like the bad guys. But they're just trying to live like us!" Keesha defended. "Oh yeah? I recall back in third grade, you were scared of the octopus!" Keesha was lost for words. "Well-that's different! I-it was-I've changed okay?" She stammered. "Oh yeah? Prove it!" Ralph grinned mischievously, knowing he had won the battle. "Ralph! You're starting to sound like Janet!" Arnold said, scared. Suddenly, a thumping interrupted Ralph from able to respond to Arnold's comment. "Can someone open the door, please?" Ms. Frizzle called from the other side of the door. Wanda jumped up and ran to the door. It squeaked as the frizzy redhead lugged a large tank filled with water into the classroom. Her dress was bright blue and a single octopus was illustrated on the hem of her skirt. The surface of the water cut off jus above her chest, revealing yellow light. Her earrings were tentacles and the same went for the ornament of her shoes. "Why, thank you Wanda. Good morning, class." Ms. Frizzle greeted. "Good morning, Ms. Frizzle." The class responded. "You need help, Ms. Frizzle?" Harris asked,making a fragmentation out of his words. "No, I'm just fine. Thank you, Harris. Did everyone enjoy our trip last night?" She asked. Most of the class nodded and hummed in response but Arnold let his eyes fall to the ground. Harris noticed Arnold looking down and his smile faded into a frown. "That's good. Now, my sister, Fiona, told me that Mr. Rhule will not allow her to keep the fish tank in the class anymore; so I gladly took it off our hands and got us a new animal to get started with!" She plopped the tank on the empty spot on the desk in the corner, and then squeezed any water that spilled onto her dress into the tank. She faced the class and grinned ear to ear. "Say hello to our new class pet, Squirt." She held up a bag with a tiny baby octopus swimming in it. Liz crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out at the octopus before jumping away. "In you go, Little Squirt!" Wanda cheered as Ms. Frizzle poured in the baby octopus as Keesha raised her hand. "Ms. Frizzle are we going on a field trip today?" Keesha asked.

"I'm afraid not, Keesha. The bus is acting up again and this time it's not the Hinkelblamenfamenjab." She told her. Most of the class seemed disappointed, but Arnold bit back a smile. Harris saw this and chuckled. "Ms. Frizzle, what were we going to do?" Ralph asked in curiosity. "We were going to go deep sea diving to study the natural behavior and habitats of octopods, Ralph. But unfortunately, the bus isn't feeling well, my poor baby. So when my sis offered me the tank, I jumped for joy! We can study Squirt in his home. I made sure it was just like the ocean so he would feel at home."

"Why, that's a great idea!" Keesha shouted. "We get in the bus and go diving in the tank!" Carlos added. "At my old school, we never went diving in a fish tank." Phoebe giggled. "Let's go! Come on you weasley wimps!" Wanda yelled, running out the door. "Race you to the bus!" Tim yelled to Carlos as the class rushed out the door. Ms. Frizzle followed them and the lizard was left alone in the classroom until a yellow helicopter entered through the window. "Okay, bus. It's a simple transformation. You can do it." Ms. Frizzle encouraged. The bus took a deep breath and began to spin. It transformed into a mini submarine and changed the occupants within it into their specially designed diving suits. The ill submarine nosedived into the water and sank to the bottom. It landed on the flat surface of the bottom of the tank and the regular bus doors swung open, somehow managing to keep the water out. "Good job, bus. Don't worry. I'll fix you soon." Ms. Frizzle said with genuine worry. She turned to the students in the back and exclaimed, "Now let's take chances, get messy, and go meet Squirt! Up close and personal." Phoebe frowned and asked, "Do octopodes attack humans?" She asked. "Very rarely, Pheebs. They stay away from us." Harris answered. The students jumped out of the bus and swam up to the octopus. "See, Keesha? Octopuses are huge!" He said. "Octopodes, Ralph, and it only looks big because now we're small." Keesha debunked. "Look at his huge eye!" Carlos declared. "Where's the nose?" Arnold asked swimming around the bumpy skin. "According to my research, the arm is the nose, Arnold!" D.A. told him.

"Dynamic deduction, D.A. Class, take a look at those arms." Ms Frizzle swam up to the tentacle. The class crowded around them, but Phoebe whimpered and swam away. Tim held her hand and her tense body relaxed. "Don't worry." He told her. "I won't let Squirt hurt you." Phoebe smiled and swam up with him. "How many cups are there?" Keesha asked, feeling one. "One one arm, 1,600!" Ms. Frizzle exclaimed. "And, according to my calculations, that's 12,800 cups altogether!" D.A. declared. "Precisely." "That's a lot of noses. No wonder the octopus knows when to hide! It can smell its predator!" Wanda concluded. "Or its prey. All living things need to eat, Wanda." Ms. Frizzle explained. "Hey, guys, what did one octopus say to the other?" Carlos asked. All attention was on him. "What's kraken? Get it?" He joked and began to do backflips while laughing. "CARLOS."

"That may be what one said to the other, but do you know what the response was?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class was now facing her. Not much. Let's cuttle." The class broke into a giggle fit and even Liz on the other side of the room began laughing. "But, Ms. Frizzle, now I'm curious. What do octopodes eat?" Wanda asked in curiosity. "That's an excellent question, Wanda. Anyone have an answer?" She asked. The class drew a blank. Dorothy Ann was vigorously searching and finally announced, "According to my research, snakes eat a variety of things! Ranging from crustaceans to even worms!" D.A. exclaimed. "So octopuses are major carnivores!" Ralph said. "That proves my point farther!" Keesha crossed her arms and sighed exasperatedly.

"Well, remember what Harris said, octopodes rarely attack humans. But they will attack if frightened. But most of the time, it's usually blotting out ink." Ms. Frizzle told Ralph. "Why do they do that?" Arnold asked. "Why don't you find out?" Ms. Frizzle asked, somehow in the bus. She pressed a button and the mouth bumper opened. A yellow light caught the students in it and transformed them each into a young octopus."Whoa! I'm an octopus!" Ralph said wiggling his tentacles. "We all are!" Arnold cried out in horror staring at his new body. "Now class, I've monitored all of your brains and I know exactly what makes you break into a nervous sweat." Ms. Frizzle winked at the students in front of her. "Let me get the facts: are you saying that octopodes squirt out ink because of fear?" Keesha asked. "Precisely Keesha; now let's start with you!" Ms. Frizzle went through each of the students, scaring them into inking. "I'm sorry about the tank, Ms. Frizzle." Someone said. The water had been contaminated with ink from the assortment of students. "No problem, class. As I always say, there's nothing like a little fear to start the day right!" She grinned as the ink from the tank disappeared and the students were transformed into humans again. "How does she do that?" Arnold asked. Suddenly the bus began to lose control and shrunk, causing the humans that were using it to shrink as well. "Oh, great! We shrunk!" The class complained in unison. Suddenly a low growl rippled through the water as a shadow cast over the students and their teacher. They turned to see a hungry looking octopus staring down at them. "Uh, is it just me, or does Squirt look hungry?" Ralph asked pointing to the squid. "Oh, he's not hungry Ralph; he's ravenous! The person who sold him to me forgot to feed him in a week. So as I always say, it's better to be in the bus-" The bus floated above the students and sucked them in with a vacuum; just like the first time they went underwater with Ms. Frizzle. "-than to be in something else!" The bus was still small enough and looked like a crab to the ravenous squid. "Ms. Frizzle, you better gun it!" Wanda ashouted. "You see, I would, Wanda, but the bus is still experiencing issues and doesn't have the ability to fly out of the tank right now. "WHAT?!" The class shouted. Ms. Frizzle threw the bus in drive and the chase began.

-|o|=|=|o|-

Both the sick bus and the hungry squid darted about the tank. "WHOA!" The class shouted as they took a wild turn. Liz tried reaching in to grab the bus and toss it out the window in an attempt to rescue the miniature class, but only ended up getting bitten by the angry animal. Suddenly a knock came to the door. "Ms. Frizzle?" It was the math teacher, Mr. Additt. "Oh, dear." ms. Frizzle muttered. Liz, could you take us into the closet?" She asked cheerfully. The lizard was sucking on her hand to get the venom out. "There's a All-Venom-Taker-Outer in my bag, Liz!" Arnold informed. The lizard painfully ran to the bag and injected herself. All eyes were now on Arnold, besides the eyes of Ms. Frizzle who was making another turn. "What? You never know on a Frizzle field trip." Arnold said. That made the class laugh, and Arnold felt included. Harris unbuckled himself from next to Wanda and plopped down next to Arnold carefully. He buckled in as the did a loop-de-loop and asked, "See?" The lizard had recovered and now was bandaged as she carried the large tank into the giant closet. She shut it and then ran to the door where the impatient math teacher was waiting. "Hey Liz. Where's the Friz? We need to talk about the biz." The lizard chuckled at the rhyme. "Sorry, liz. I'm teaching my class about division by rhyming. Anyway, where's Ms. Frizzle? I have a memo for her." Liz shrugged and then pointed to the desk. "No, Liz, it's too important to just leave on her desk. I have to give it to her personally. I'll give my class an assignment and then come back." The teacher rushed out of the classroom and shut the door behind him. Liz ran into the closet where the great chase was still underway. "What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do?" Wanda chanted. "We can't keep swimming in circles!" Tim added. "We have to get out of this tank!" Carlos declared. "Okay, Keesha, you win. I kinda feel bad for the octopus. He's just a poor guy that just wants an easy lunch. He was starved. And octopodes aren't bloodthirsty monsters. They're just like us! Trying to survive. You win, Keesh." Ralph said holding his hand out to shake. Keesha shook it. "Now, how do we get out of here?" Ralph added. "You know, class, we don't necessarily have to leave. We are in the perfect position to study an octopus' digestive system!" Ms. Frizzle responded from the front. The class looked at her as if she had three heads, two of them belonging to octopodes. "No thank you, Ms. Frizzle. We can do that another day." Phoebe kindly declined. "Hey, why don't we try to scare it? By becoming his predator, we could scare him off and then escape!" Tim suggested. "Hey, you're right! He'll ink in fear and won't be able to find us! But what eats an octopus?" Arnold asked. "According to my research, the most common predators for octopodes are the shark, and eel, and believe it or not dolphins!" D.A. exclaimed from next to Carlos. "Well, let's do the shark. Everyone hates sharks." "Don't be so sure about that, Carlos." Ms. Frizzle said with that twinkle in her eye again.

She pressed a button and the bus transformed into a small shark with t's sleek body and turned to face the octopus. The bus bit at the water, exaggerating its large teeth. Squirt's eye dilated and he began to ink. The water became pitch black and disguised the class from their previous predator. "Ah, it was the dorklejimpangovenhab." Ms. Frizzle realized. "The what?" The class shouted. "It's just a part in the bus that controls it's vital functions. That's what was causing him to be sick. The cure in octopus ink." She told them. "Why didn't the bus get better when we were octopodes?" Phoebe asked. "Pure octopus ink, Phoebe." ms. Frizzle answered. The bus leaped out of the tank and closet before turning into a whirlwind of yellow. It soared out the window. Liz raced to the window and scoped out the ground. As the bus returned to normal a flash emerged from it. It sneezed, sending itself back a few class laughed as it awkwardly moved forward. "Ugh. I hate it when the dorklejimpangovenhab starts acting up because cleanup is such a hassle." Ms. Frizzle told them. "Luckily, R. U. just updated the bus with a new system that will clean the bus with the press of a button. Ms. Frizzle swung her finger in the air for a moment and brought it down to the button. She pressed it and in the blink of an eye, the bus returned to normal, the ink gone. "Ah, much better." She sighed contently. The bus doors flew open and the class arrived in the classroom before Mr. Additt came back. "Ah, Ms. Frizzle, I've been dying to give this to you. Interesting attire." He complimented. "Why thank you, Aaron." Suddenly, another sneeze came from outside. "Bless you. Wait. Who sneezed?" He asked. "Maybe one of your students. Besides, you should be getting back, now." Ms. Frizzle said, ushering him out the door. "No, wait, Ms. Frizzle!" He whined as the door shut. "Hey, Ms. Frizzle, wanna hear a joke?" Carlos asked. "Sure, Carlos. Let a ripple!" She joked. "Well, how do eels get around the seabed?" He asked. "What?" The class asked. "The octo-bus!" He smirked. "CARLOS." The class began to laugh as the bell rang. They didn't care. The joke was ironically funny.

All around the world, phones were ringing. The children on the other end asked the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer sat in the driver's seat of Ms. Frizzle's bus alongside Liz and Chip while the animals offered lunch options. "Well, I'm lactose-intolerant, so that won't work." He told them. The phone sitting on the dashboard lit picked it up and answered. "Magic School Bus, producer speaking." The child on the other end sounded like a boy, but the producer wasn't sure "Hi, I just watched your show on octopodes, and you have gotta be squidding me!" The kid whined. "Actually, squids and octopuses are two different things. Squids live in the open ocean, just below the surface of the water and the tide pool. But our show was on octopodes, and they live on the seafloor." The producer corrected. The windshield in front of the producer lit up. It depicted a diagram of the different levels of the sea. It put a blue blip at the bottom to indicate octopuses live at the seafloor and a red one in the middle to indicate squids live in the open ocean. "Right, and squids use their tentacles to capture prey only, but octopodes use them to move on the floor too." The image on the screen changed. On the top half, a squid was reaching out for a crab that was swimming about. On the bottom half, a picture of an octopus was slithering over and reaching for a crab that was on the ocean floor. "But that's not my question." The producer nodded. "Ask away."

"How do octopodes squirt ink?" the caller asked. "Well, there's this special sac scientists call the Ink Sac that produces and holds all the ink. When the octopus get frightened, they jet a stream of water in a certain direction that pushes the octopus forward. Then, the ink sac opens and the ink is transported out of the anus of the squid into the water. It's like farting, but for water." The producer explained. All while this was happening, a diagram of Squirt when he was inking came onto the screen. He was see-through and the person watching could see the ink travel through his body as he swam away from the class. "Cool!" The kid said in awe. "Could you clear up another thing for me?" The kid asked. "Shoot." The producer confirmed. "Well, how do octopodes hunt?" A video of an octopus creeping towards its prey appeared on the screen. "Well, first they find the prey and then they slowly inch towards it, careful not to alert it. Then they pounce, holding it down with it's eight tentacles. Then, it slowly drags the prey into its mouth and digests it." The producer answered. "WOW! One more thing. You guys said Squirt wasn't eating well before Ms. Frizzle got him. Did he ever get his meal?" The child asked. "Oh yeah, Ms. Frizzle had stopped at the store on her way to WMS and grabbed a bunch of fish for him. He was so stuffed, he couldn't leave the bottom of the tank! Or maybe that's because it was natural for him to be towards the bottom. Thanks for calling. Bye!" Chip and Liz held up another sign as the producer put the phone back. "Calamari? Get real!" He said, bringing his feet down from the dashboard. As he did, he pressed a button and the images on the windshield disappeared. The bus started to spin and shrink. Somehow, the producer drove them into the tank. The bus had transformed into a fish and everyone in the bus could hear what Squirt was saying. "Oooo~ a new fish for me to gobble! Would you like the regular creep and pounce or would you rather me just eat you whole without the creeping part?" He asked. "I'd prefer if you didn't eat me at all the producer shouted. He took out his phone and called Valerie. "Hey, boss, what's up?" She asked on the other end of the line. "Uh, Valerie..? You're not busy are you? We have a magic situation." He said.


	13. The Magic School Bus Gets a Substitute

The class entered the classroom expecting to be the only ones there until Mr. Frizzle made his somewhat flamboyant entrance, but to their surprise, they found a substitute at his desk. The class began whispering amongst themselves in shock. "The Frizzles have never missed a day! Why would they miss one now?" D.A. asked. "Maybe he's on vacation?" Arnold suggested. "Get real, Arnold! Vacation in the middle of the school year? Maybe he's sick!" Wanda countered. "Well, what he's doing is not important. What's important is that we get on with the lesson plan." The sub said, hovering above them. The students dashed to their seats and the substitute walked to the front. "My name is Ms. Destiny. I'm not going to bother with attendance, you all are here. Mr. Frizzle also gave me a detailed chart of your names, so let's begin with Keesha!" The girl in her seat jumped. "Today's debate day! What are your thoughts on imperialism and the annexation of Hawaii?" The teacher asked her. Keesha looked for her classmates for help. "What, you don't know any of this?" Ms. Destiny asked. D.A. raised her hand. "According to my research, imperialism is the belief that it's okay to force your thoughts of belief, such as religion, onto a weaker country. And annexation is to bring a smaller country into a larger one." Ms. Destiny smiled. "Very good, Dorothy Ann. None of you knew this before she explained it?" The class nodded. "We usually go on field trips and throughout the trip, he explains this sort of stuff." Carlos said.

"Ah, I see. Well, why don't we try that?" Ms. Destiny offered. "To the bus!" Phoebe shouted. The class darted out into the hall and outside to the awaiting bus. The doors swung open and most of the class boarded, including Ms. Destiny, but Phoebe stopped and said, "Hey, bus." He honked at her in response. "I know you're nervous because you've never been used without Mr. Frizzle, but I promise we'll keep you safe." The bus' tense body relaxed and the expression softened. "Thanks, us. For everything." The bus nuzzled against her as a sign of affection. She left its side and ran on board. "So where are we going, kids?" Ms. Destiny asked from the front of the bus. "Well, that depends. When was Hawaii annexed as a state?" Tim asked. "1898." The sub responded. "Here, take my spot. This could get a little freaky, and I don't want you messing with the wrong controls and we end up inside a fish or something." Arnold said. "What? No! Arnold, sit down!" The substitute ordered. There was a tapping on the driver's window. "Better do what he says. Us Frizzles are anything but ordinary." Ms. Frizzle winked and joined her class on her own bus. The sub finally gave in and moved into Arnold's seat. Arnold buckled in and yelled, "SEATBELTS EVERYONE!" He input the direction "TIME TRAVEL" and entered "1898." Blue light surrounded the bus and golden sparkles emitted from the light. The bus was still not feeling comfortable and began to quake in fear. Ms. Destiny looked around in hopes to find a camera. To tell her that this was a prank. "WHAT HAPPENING?" She cried. "A FIELD TRIP!" The class cheered in response. The light surrounded the globe and flashed the class back in time. They were still in America, but not in Hawaii.

"What just happened?" Ms. Destiny asked from underneath her seat. "We went back in time, Ms. Destiny." Dorothy Ann responded from the seat behind her. "I suggest you get back in your seat. We're about to transform." Arnold told her from the front. She refused. "Come on, Ms. Destiny! You'll get hurt if you don't get in your seat." The grown woman, acting like a three year old, still refused to get in her seat. "Fine." Arnold said. He input a direction and two mechanical hands reached down and lifted Ms. Destiny into her seat. She was locked into her seat by her seatbelts and the arms retracted. "Thank you, bus." The bus honked in response before following the second direction. It began to spin and when it stopped, it hopped into the ocean. It had turned into a sailboat. Arnold steered the bus in the direction of Hawaii, focused on what he was doing. The bus was rocked around by the violent waves, but Arnold seemed unfazed by it. "Arn, where did you learn to sail like that?" Ralph asked. "My grandpa taught me when I was really young, like 4 or 5." The class travelled faster than any normal boat and reached Hawaii in twenty minutes. "We're here!" Arnold announced to the rest of the class. They landed on the shore and Arnold threw the bus into park. "Alright, Ms. Destiny, what is our aim today?" The class crowded the cowering substitute. "How is this possible?" She muttered. "Okay, she doesn't look good. Someone get the manual!" Keesha ordered. D.A. pulled it out of her book bag and began to read. "AHA!" She yelled. The rest of the class backed away at D.A.'s request as she explained the world of magic to the substitute. When she had finished, the supply teacher had relaxed. "Okay, I'm ready." She said, with newfound confidence. So, my lesson plan is debate. Was the annexation of Hawaii an example of American Imperialism?" She asked. The class pondered. "Wait. Before you answer that, why don't we get some background info." The teacher took the driver's seat again and punched in an order. Soon, the class was going back in time again. "Did you explain to her how the bus works?" Arnold asked D.A. "No, she must have learned from watching you!" D.A. whispered back.

"Back before Hawaii was annexed into the U.S., the United States was using Hawaii for several reasons." The teacher explained. She shrank the bus and thy took off into the sky. "Anyone know what those were?" She asked. "Could it be for agricultural purposes?" Carlos asked. "It's sunny in Hawaii and it seems like the perfect place to grow crops." He said. "Not a bad answer, and not a wrong one either! When Hawaii was still separated from the states, there were people looking to grow their crops and make money off of it." The bus landed on a leaf, now feeling comfortable. "Hawaii was perfect for growing sugarcane and pineapples." The teacher threw open the class piled out of the bus and stood on the leaf. "Wow, look!" Wanda yelled. The class watched as their classmate sank her teeth into the bamboo looking plant and sucked up the juices inside. "The sugarcane is larger now that I'm smaller! And it's so sweet!"She told them. The class ran over and followed her lead. "It's so good!" Arnold shuddered in delight. "I know! It's better than the ones my mom brings home!" Tim agreed. "Class, we'd better get going. There's more to the story!" Ms. Destiny called, driving the bus over to class ripped their teeth out of the sugarcane. Wanda took a piece to go and shared with Arnold who sat next to her. "Now there were other Americans besides businessmen looking for cash in Hawaii." Ms. Destiny explained flying the bus around. "I know!" D.A. called. "According to my research, missionaries saw the people of Hawaii as unholy and wanted to convert them to Christianity." D.A. explained.

"And right you are, Dorothy Ann! And the U.S. also saw the Hawaiian Islands as a chance to stop other countries from invading ours. Hawaii was the golden spot for America. And soon, they got their chance to take it! Now, before I show you, does everyone remember what annexation and imperialism means?" The class nodded to her. "Annexation means to bring land into a country." Ralph said. "And imperialism means to force beliefs onto a weaker country." Phoebe added. "Good. Now before 1848, measles was unknown to Hawaii because no one had contracted it before. But with all these American people showing up out of nowhere, it threw off the balance and ecosystem. I'm going to use my better judgement and not take you there because I don't want you to contract it either. But, the Hawaiian king, because Hawaii was a monarchy, had contracted measles on his way to England. When he died, the Hawaiian people were lost and had no idea what to do. The American people saw this as a chance to take over and change everything. That's when Queen Liliuokalani came in." Ms. Destiny parked the bus on the ground and turned to the students. "She thought that the Americans were doing horrible things to their country and wanted to stop it to restore pride to the American people, but ultimately failed. The Americans took her into custody and forced her to give up the throne. She told her people not to put up a fight and in 1898, the American flag was raised high above the land of Hawaii. The class looked to their feet as they were transported back into their present time.

The bus was normal again and the doors flew open. The class trudged into their seats and said nothing as Ms. Destiny walked in. "But the story doesn't end there. You heard the Hawaiian side, but the American side hasn't been heard yet." The class' eyes lit up. "The Americans saw the Hawaiians as unholy and thought they were doing them a favor. A quote to live by is 'Democracies are susceptible to dictatorship.' And that's how the Americans saw it. The Hawaiian people were living under a monarchy and thought that it was bad to live under a dictator that called all the shots."

Carlos raised his hand. "But isn't that the same thing for America? We have a president that chooses what happens and what doesn't. "Yes, but we are a democracy which means the people get to choose. A monarchy means that one person, usually a King or Queen, will decide what goes without listening to the people and the Americans saw this a wrong. So they wanted to fix something that didn't need to be fixed. We have five minutes left in the period, so I'm going to ask the question that I asked in the beginning: do you think that the annexation of Hawaii was an act of imperialism?" The class pondered for a moment and consulted with each other. As the final bell for the day rang, the class stood up together and answered, "Yes." They walked out the door, saying their goodbyes. Ms. Frizzle walked in and said, "Anthony, there was no need to pretend to be absent." The regular teacher took off the costume and said, "If they knew it was me, I thought they would answer in a way I would like. Using Ms. Destiny, it would be an easy way to get the truth out of them. That's how I justify it."

 **This lesson was a bit more...sensitive than others. I just taught it the way I learned it in class. They taught us the Hawaiian point of view first, and then the American point of view. If you want more information, my teacher showed us a video. I found it, so here's the link. But this only shows the Hawaiian POV** watch?v=XpsmUCtsd2o


	14. The Magic School bus Makes Noise

The students ran into the classroom eager as ever to learn about whatever the Friz had in store. "Man, yesterday was wild!" Carlos said. "I know! Who would've guessed octopodes were such complex creatures?" Ralph asked, waving to Squirt. Harris trudged in, cupping one ear. "Ow!" He yelped in pain. "What's the problem, Harris?" Arnold asked walking over to is desk. "Well, yesterday, I missed the field trip in Mr. Frizzle's class because I had a doctor's appointment. And after that, my mom promised me I could get my ear pierced. And I did." He showed Arnold his new earring." The students crowded around him complimenting him on his cool new look. "Well, I think they missed the hole intended for the earring, because now, my ear hurts like crazy!" He whimpered. "Ouch. That's got to hurt." Tim said. "The worst part is, when I told my mom, she said, 'I told you it would hurt! Stop complaining!'"

The class felt remorse towards their friend and tried to cheer him up but failed, for his ear ruined his good mood. Ms. Frizzle''s closet door swung open and she greeted the students brightly. "Good morning, class!" She sung sweetly. "OW!" Harris said gripping his ear, harder than intendind. The class took a look at Ms. Frizzle. Her dress was purple and on the hem of her dress was a single large dot with a sonar escaping from it. Above her belt was a bell and on the sleeves of her dress were hammers. Her earrings were fake ears and on her shoes were plastic ears as well. The class was perplexed as to what could possibly be the lesson plan for the day. "Well, I'm sorry, Harris. Do you have sensitive ears?" She asked. "Today I do! I think my new earring is what is causing pain in my ear." Ms. Frizzle scrutinized his ear. "Hmm. A new earring, huh? The perfect spot to begin the investigation." She muttered. "What?" He asked. "To the bus, everyone!" Ms. Frizzle whispered. "Two by two, please!" The class followed her directions and went outside. There was one bus waiting for them. "Hmm...looks like Mr. Frizzle already left. "Ms. Frizzle, we can't go on a field trip now!" Harris whined as his classmates boarded the bus. "Why not?" She asked. "Because we have to find out why my ear hurts and why it's so sensitive! I won't be able to go!" He explained.

"I see, Harris. Well, who said you were going on the field trip?" She asked pushing him out of the parking lot and onto the sidewalk. "Wait, I don't have to go? But I want to go! I love your class, Ms. Frizzle!" He told her. "I can tell, but you have to trust me. I promise I will explain everything later. Just go back inside to the nurse's office." Harris sighed sadly and walked away towards the building. As he walked away he heard the bus doors squeak shut. As he opened the door to the building he could feel the air of the bus spinning on the back of his neck and head. He kept going and shut the door behind him. Little did he know, _he_ was the field trip.

The bus whizzed up to his ear and Ms. Frizzle pointed out the window. "Say hello to the pinna, class!" Ms. Frizzle told them. "You won't see it for a while." She said as the flew the bus right into his good ear. "OW!" he cried as the bus shrunk within it. "Can't we _pin_ na it to the wall so I can see it later?" Carlos asked. "CARLOS." The class groaned as they were plunged into darkness. "Where are we?" Arnold asked, quaking in fear. "It's so dark." Keesha noted. "At my old school, we'd turn on the headlights when it would be too dark to see." Phoebe suggested. "Excellent observation class! Almost no light gets in your ear." Ms. Frizzle complimented as she flicked on the headlights. "Wait...we're inside an ear?" Arnold asked slumping in his seat. Ms. Frizzle's dress was starting to make sense. A whole lot of sense. "Why are we h _ear_ , Ms. Frizzle? We have to help Harris." Carlos asked. "Because, Carlos, to get the inside story, you have to get the inside job done. "HANG ON EVERYONE!" Ms. Frizzle called. The bus sped up out of nowhere and began to book it down the ear canal. "According to my research, the first part of hearing happens in the ear canal." D.A. announced. "Is that what we're in right now?" D.A. asked. Ms. Frizzle nodded. "The sound waves enter our ears and the ear canal serves as a bouncy house for them. They get propelled to the tympanic membrane." Ms. Frizzle explained. The class stopped looking out the window and stared at their teacher. "The what?" The class asked in unison. "The eardrum." Ms. Frizzle answered as the bus squeaked to a stop.

Harris suddenly jerked his head away from the nurse looking around the room to find the source of the noise. "Harris, stop moving." The young woman said. "You didn't hear that?" He asked. The nurse looked at him. "Did I hear what?" She asked. "That squeaking. It sounded like...like bus brakes!" Harris said, not realizing the connection. "Harris, the buses are long gone. Stop moving please." The nurse ordered. As she looked within his bad ear. "Please be gentle." He pleaded. "Okay, I promise." She told him. The nurse winced as she looked in his ear. "Yeah, it doesn't look good. I'm calling your mom to pick you up. You need to see a doctor." She told him throwing out the dirty part of the tool. "Aw, man. I wish I was with my class right now." He told the nurse. "Who's your teacher?" She asked as she threw away her gloves and went to wash her hands. "Ms. Frizzle. They're on a field trip right now." He explained. "Ah, I've heard a lot about Ms. Frizzle. She seems nice, too. As for her field trips, I think they're too frequent. Oh well. Lie down, don't touch your ear, and I'll call your mom." Harris obliged and whispered "I wish I was with them right now.

Little did Harris know, they were closer than he thought.

In his ear, throughout the conversation, the class was exploring the ear canal. "Wow! This is cool! The ear has tons of hair!" Wand said, swinging from them like Tarzan. "I wonder if these hairs are to keep bacteria from infecting your ear." Keesha wondered aloud. "Precisely, Keesha! Good thinking." When Harris lied down, the class was knocked onto his eardrum, causing a sharp sting to arise in his ear. "OW!" he shouted sitting up immediately. The nurse looked over at him in worry. The class bounced off the drum, but the bus was still sitting on it. "OW!" Harris screamed. "Liz, quickly! Activate the photon phaser!" The lizard that no one had noticed before scampered into the bus and pressed a button on the dashboard. The bus fell through the eardrum, disappearing somewhere in the ear. "According to my research, another couple of seconds and the bus would have torn through the eardrum!" D.A. alerted her classmates. "That's why we have to be careful when using Q-Tips. Our eardrums are extremely sensitive. Everyone, press the button on your belt and follow me!" The Friz shouted phasing through the drum. The rest of the class followed her, but D.A. checked first. "No physical damage." She wiped her brow and dove into the drum.

"Are you alright?" The nurse asked Harris after she hung up. "I'm fine now. I just got a sharp pain for a moment is all." He explained. "Okay, but stay off that bad ear. Your mom is on her way, go ahead and pack up and then wait in the office." Harris nodded and left the nurse alone in her office.

The class landed in the middle ear and looked in the darkness. "Ms. Frizzle, how are we supposed to see anything if we have no magic headlights?" Tim asked. Ms. Frizzle turned on her helmet's flashlight and the class followed her example. "Where are we?" The class asked. "Well, class, the ear canal is the outer ear, so we're in the middle ear. Anyone see the bus or Liz?" Ms. Frizzle asked. The class looked but couldn't find any sign of yellow. "Hey, check out these bones!" Phoebe said walked over and gently feeling one. "What are these Ms. Frizzle?" She asked. The teacher walked over. "Well, the one closest to the eardrum is called the malleus and the one closest to the inner ear is called the incus." She explained. "They aid moving the sound waves to the brain." "The what?" The class asked. "The hammer and the anvil." Ms. Frizzle simplified. "And this thing back here is the stirrup." D.A. explained.

Harris was hearing everything they were saying but he was so caught up in his thoughts about what could be wrong that it never occurred to him that his class could be within his body.

"Fascinating." He muttered.

"According to my research, the when the ear canal sends the sound waves to the eardrum, it sends them as vibrations." D.A. told everyone. "Wait a minute. This is making some weird sense." Wanda said. "It's as if they're all connected for a reason." Arnold said going along the body that keeps them together. "They are, Arnold. Anyone know why?"

"I bet it's because when the soundwaves hit the eardrum, the eardrum sends these to the mallet and then to the anvil and then to the stirrup!" Harris connected. "Dynamic deduction, Harris!" Ms. Frizzle praised. "Thanks, Ms. Frizzle." He said, still oblivious. He shut his locker and headed to the office. "But wait, the soundwaves still have to get to the brain like everything else. The temporal lobe has to receive the messages from the nerve!" Phoebe realized. "And that's where the next part of our tour begins, come along everyone!" Ms. Frizzle declared beginning to run. Se stopped, though, because the bus phased through the wall and into the middle ear. "It's the bus and Liz!" The class cheered. The doors opened for them and they climbed on. Ms. Frizzle high fived her reptilian buddy and took the driver's seat. "Seatbelts, everyone!" Ms. Frizzle called.

Clicks came from all around, including from outside Harris, where he was putting on his seatbelt in his mom's car. "Okay, Ms. Frizzle!" He said. "Your teacher? She's not here, hun." His mom told him as she pulled out of the parking lot of the school.

But she was, and she was currently phasing through her son's ear. "And now, we're inside the inner ear, class. Take a look to your left. You'll notice that those are the organs of balance." Ms. Frizzle noted like a tour guide. "Yeah! I heard that they're called the utricle and saccule." Tim said. "That's way cool!" Ralph said. "Now, class, is where we follow the sound." Ms. Frizzle warned. With the press of a button, the bus turned into a brain exploring ship and sat at the stirrup. "Alright class, this is where it begins! You see that little thing over there? That's called the oval window and the stirrup is connected to it. When the sound waves get sent through there, they turned into electrical impulses and are sent up the nerves to the brain. A golden electrical impulse began to rocket up the nerve. "Follow that order!" Ms. Frizzle shouted. The students sat in their seats and buckled in as the bus dashed after the electrical impulse. "It's too fast, Ms. Frizzle!" Arnold yelled. "We're not going to be able to keep up with it!" D.A. shouted. "Isn't there anything we can do?" Wanda asked. "There is indeed, Wanda!" Ms. Frizzle shouted. She and Liz winked at each other before taking out a key from each of their pockets. They put them in the keyhole and turned at the same time. A button on the dashboard began to glow and together, the reptile and the teacher pressed it. In a flash of light, the eight students, the teacher, the lizard, and the bus were electrical impulses flying down the nerves. "THIS IS TERRIFIC!" D.A. shouted.

"WA-HOO!"

"THIS IS EVEN BETTER THAN ARNOLD'S DIGESTIVE SYSTEM!"

"I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE STAYED HOME TO-HEY!"

"At my old school, we _never_ turned into sound!"

The class raced after the impulse and rocketed into the brain. "And now..the most important part of the process. The brain." Ms. Frizzle announced.

The doctor greeted the woman and her son and began asking him different questions while checking his vitals and other things, such as his reflexes. "Alright, let's take a look at your ear." The doctor said." Harris suddenly snapped out of his daydream mode and everything from the past half hour came into play. "My class is in my brain." He muttered. "What was that?" The doctor asked. "I said, 'Is there a bathroom around here?'" The doctor opened the door and pointed to the family bathroom. He ran in and shut the door and locked it. He took off his beanie and looked into the mirror at his forehead. "Ms. Frizzle? What are you doing in my head?" He asked. "I thought you knew." She responded. "No! I never agreed to this!" He whispered. "You seemed to be on board so I just kept going. You didn't say anything against it." Harris was lost for words. She was right. "Okay, you can finish the lesson. He said. He slumped onto the floor and leaned against the wall. "Heh. I never thought _I_ would be the field trip." He muttered. "You should be proud! Not everyone gets to be the field trip." D.A. tried to cheer him up. It worked. Alright Ms. Frizzle. Finish it." he said confidently. He left the bathroom as Ms. Frizzle wrapped up.

"When your brain receives electrical impulses it's perceived as sound!" She said. "And that's how you hear sound." The class was expecting more. "That's it?" They asked. "That's it." Ms. Frizzle shrugged. "It's not as flamboyant as you think." She told them. "Now, let's head on on out of the head." Ms. Frizzle announced. The class groaned as the bus screeched to a halt next to the students and they boarded, turning back into students. The bus shot out of the brain and through the nervous system. They popped out of the inner ear and went straight to the ear canal. Then, they snuck out of Harris' good ear and popped into his bad one. "Ms. Frizzle! What are you doing? I thought we were going back to school!" Arnold shouted in fear. "Well, we said we were going to help Harris, didn't we?" She asked. "Well, can't we do that another time? All this ear stuff makes _my_ ears hurt." Arnold whined. "What? Is this _ear_ itating?" Carlos asked. "CARLOS." "Woah, this ear looks a lot drier than the left ear." Keesha noted. D.A. flipped vigorously through pages in her medical book. "Is it just me or is it really warm in here?" Ralph added. "I think Harris has an earache!" Tim said. D.A. searched more. "Wait, Ms. Frizzle! Stop the bus. I think I know what Harris has, but i need to borrow the mega magnifier!" Ms. Frizzle stopped and swung open the doors. As D.A. crossed the border of the bus to the ear, her suit for exploring the ear magically came on. She dove through the eardrum and into the middle ear.

Using the mega magnifier, she zoomed in on the ear. "Just as I suspected! There's bacteria all over the wall of the middle ear. He has a middle ear infection! D.A. swam through the eardrum and into the ear canal and ran onto the bus, her special clothes disappearing. "He had a middle ear infection! There's bacteria lining the walls of the middle ear! Come look!" She ordered. The class jumped off the bus and dove into the middle ear, their suits back on. "Look!" She shouted. "Woah! Look at all the bacteria on the walls. No wonder his ear hurts like hell!" Carlos said, passing it on. "Oh, bad, oh, bad, oh, bad, bad, bad." Keesha muttered. "Can't we do something, Ms. Frizzle?" Phoebe asked. "No, Phoebe, we have to let this pass on by itself. The infection tends to leave by itself in a few days to a few weeks. Everyone, back to the bus, and Harris, just tell the doctor about the infection." The class ran back to the bus and took off the second the doors closed. "That was awesome!" Ralph said. "That part where we became electrical impulses was my favorite." Carlos said. "Can we do it again, sometime Ms. Frizzle?" He asked. "When we start our unit on the senses, maybe, Carlos. But for now, it's back to school for us." The bus flew out of the ear and the class waved to Harris before sneaking out of the building and returning to normal size. As they drove by Harris' window Ms. Frizzle honked the horn at Harris. "Feel better!" She shouted and the bus drove away.

All around the world, phones were ringing. The kids on the other end of the line were asking the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer, Liz, and Chip sat at in their seats at the Molly Cule concert. It was night time and they were jamming out. Suddenly, she could feel her phone vibrate and stepped out to answer it. She was afraid it was the network. "Hello, Magic School Bus, producer speaking." She answered. "Hi, I just watched you show on ears and the information was an earful!" The girl on the other end said. "Heh, well, the human body is a complex structure." She said. "Apparently it's not too complex for an eighth grader, because when you were told about cochlea, it was in one ear and out the other." The girl complained. "Okay, eighth grader, let me h _ear_ it." The producer responded. "Well, the cochlea is the thing inside your ear that looks like a snail shell and for the sound to travel in your ear, it has to move and the cochlea is what moves the stereocilia, WHICH you didn't even touch on." The girl said. "Yes, well, we only had a half hour, we couldn't-" "Save it. You use that excuse every single time. You guys are so _ear_ responsible." The girl chuckled at her joke. "And you're giving me an earache." The producer responded. "Now I'm busy, so could you _ear_ ase the _ear_ reversible damage you've caused my self esteem?"

"Nope, not done. You guys also forgot to talk about the eustachian tube!" "OH!" The producer slapped her forehead. "I knew I forgot something! But i f _ear_ you already know what it does." The producer responded. "No, I don't could you cl _ear_ it up for me?"

"Well, the eustachian tube is connected to the nasopharynx which is made out of the upper throat and back of the nasal cavity. What it does is match the air pressure inside the ear to the air pressure outside the body!" "Well how does it do that?"

"Do you ever yawn or when you get off a plane your ears pop?" "Yeah." "That's how! The air inside the ear flows out so that it's the same as the place you're in. Amazing isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's m _ear_ ly amazing!" The girl said. "Alright fine you win! My pun game sucks and brings up the r _ear_." The producer said. "Bye!" The girl responded. The producer hung and turned to back inside but was stopped by a security guard. "Ticket." He said. "But I went in already. I just stepped out to answer my phone." The producer argued. "Listen to me! No ticket, no entry! You hear me?!" He shouted. "No need to shout. I hear you, loud and...cl _ear_."


	15. The Magic School Bus Goes to War

After Harris had returned from the doctor, he had decided he wanted to go back to school. He had missed two field trips, back to back: Mr. Frizzle's field trip on the annexations of Hawaii the day prior, and Ms. Frizzle's field trip within his ear and _brain_. Of course he wouldn't be able to go on the last field trip since the class went inside him, but nonetheless, he returned to Walkerville Elementary to go on the next field trip. He entered Mr. Frizzle's classroom where chaos was loose. The students were making noise so loud he could hear them down the hallway, and with his sensitive ear, it wasn't going to be pretty. He cupped his ear and yeled. "GUYS! Calm down." The class rushed up to him, whispering. "Hey, buddy. How ya feeling?" Carlos asked. "Is your ear okay?" Keesha worriedly asked. "It's alright and so am I, thanks." He grinned. "What was it like inside my ear and brain?" He asked as they all sat in their assigned seats. "Well, the ear was an exp _ear_ ience and the brain was end _ear_ ing." Carlos joked. "CARLOS." The class groaned silently. Mr. Frizzle flamboyantly entered the room, his suit flapping in the wind moving past him. ON his sleeves and pant legs were rifles and the rest of his clothes were boue. His collar was white and the pin attached to it was another rifle that seemed to glow red. "Good morning, class." He greeted, setting his satchel on the desk.

"Good morning, Mr. Frizzle." The class replied. "How's everyone doing? Harris, I see that you are recovering nicely. My. sister briefed me on what happened earlier today." Harris gave a thumbs up to his teacher. "And how is everyone else?" He asked. They all nodded, and smiled at him. "Great, let's begin the lesson!" He clasped his hands together and walked up to the chalkboard. "Our unit is on imperialism. Can anyone refresh our minds on what imperialism is?" He asked. The entire class, except Harris, raised their hands. "Uh...Ralph."

"Imperialism is the act of forcing religious and/or economic beliefs onto weaker nations." He replied. "Very good." Mr. Frizzle replied. "Well, imperialism was this great thing that made nations seem stronger to others and not to be messed with. Dorothy Ann?" He selected the student eagerly raising her hand. She stood up and announced, "According to my research, imperialism was the cause of wars, such as the Spanish-American War." She read aloud. "It's funny you should mention that, D.A., that is exactly where we're going today!" Mr. Frizzle announced. Chip popped out of the drawer in his desk in a war outfit and was holding a tiny rifle made out of cardboard. The class laughed at the funny act and the squirrel took off the getup. Chip hopped onto Mr. Frizzle's shoulder as her slung his satchel across his other shoulder. "Well, are you guys coming?" He asked, hopping out the window. The class dashed out of their seats and darted out the door. They were making a ruckus as they shuffled past Mrs. Reede's class and the teacher swung open her classroom door shushing them sternly. "The Frizzles and their field trips." She sighed closing the door. The class rushed out of the building and into the parking lot where their teacher was waiting for them in the bus. They scurried on and took their seats, buckling in. "Alright kids, I think we are past our prime, we are going back in time!" He rhymed exaggerating every syllable. He pulled on the lever and the blue light swarmed the bus and its inhabitants. The golden sparkles irradiated from the blue light indicating they were about to be sent back. The light surrounded the globe and flashed launching the kids into the older days of Earth. "Welcome, class, to Cuba." Mr. Frizzle welcomed.

"Cuba? What are we doing here? I thought this was the Spanish-American War, not the Cuban-American War." Phoebe softly noted. "Maybe the name of the title is misleading, Pheebs, like in biased articles." Arnold suggested. "Right you are, Arnold. The war was initially between Cuba and Spain all the way in Europe. Cuba was fighting for their independence and America had nothing to do with this." Mr. Frizzle explained. The bus suddenly turned into a space shuttle and flew into space. As soon as it was in orbit, the bus turned and faced the Earth. "The Americans were fearful of a rebellion starting so close to the United States." He informed to the astronauts in the back. "That makes sense, but I can't make out where the U.S. and Cuba is." Tim said, sketching the sight in front of him. He was making a humorous comic and the view from space was exactly what he needed to draw it. "Well, take a look towards the shape of the continent that looks like a longer version of the bus as a ship." Mr. Frizzle informed. "Well there's America." Wanda noted. "So is that Cuba?" She asked pointing to the smaller continent. "It is indeed, Wanda." He confirmed. "Wow, it's so close to the U.S.!" Phoebe wailed. "According to my research, Florida and Cuba are exactly 485 miles apart." D.A. announced. "No wonder the U.S. didn't want a war breaking out." Ralph said. "If someone took the United States the wrong way they'd be attacked and the country would be history!" Arnold added. "But, class, there was one major event that caused America to join the war." Mr. Frizzle announced holding up his index finger. "Back to Earth?" Tim asked sadly. "Back to Earth, Tim. but here, let me help you out." Mr. Frizzle typed in a command, pulled the lever and a snapshot of the U.S. and Cuba next to one another was plastered on his window. "Gee, thanks, Mr. Frizzle!" He appreciated. "No problem. Now let's go!" The teacher announced launching the space shuttle down to Earth at a blistering speed. "Chip, activate the heat shield!" He ordered. The squirrel saluted and then typed in the command. The bus instantly cooled down, the beads of sweat disappearing from the astronauts' heads. The bus was launched forward in time as they landed in the water. The space shuttle transformed into a raft and headed towards a dock. Mr. Frizzle stopped the bus far away from the dock, though, confusing the students in the class.

"What are you doing Mr. Frizzle?" D.A. asked. "We're so far away from the dock." Arnold worriedly whined. "Oh, don't worry, you'll see something very soon." He replied. Suddenly, a large wave erupted underneath them sending them flying into the air. "Check out that ship." Mr. Frizzle suggested. The raft glided down majestically as the ship exploded into a million pieces. "What just happened?!" Arnold shrieked. "That ship was blasted to smithereens." Carlos shouted. "According to my research, Germany destroyed the ship and it had Americans boarded on it!" D.A. announced. "Radical research, D.A.! That was the explosion of the U.S.S. Maine and it was the main cause that pushed America into the war. They declared war on Spain in April 25, 1898. I'm not going to bring you into the war for obvious reasons, so let's get back to school." he bus returned to its original state as it was launched forward in time to the present day. It drove out of the beach and cut through the sand and onto the main road. As they drove back to school, Wanda asked, "But Mr. Frizzle, what happened after the war finished?" Mr. Frizzle smirked in the front seat and answered, "The Platt Amendment and Foraker Act." He answered.

The class looked at each other in confusion. "Isn't the Foraker Act what allows Cuba independence?" Arnold asked. "Exactly Arnold! How did you know that?" Mr. Frizzle asked. "Because of the issue that came up a bit back. It kinda had me intrigued." He said. "And the Platt Amendment must be what limited Cuba's independence!" Harris concluded. "Exactly. Man, you guys are smarter than the kids I taught back at the University." Mr. Frizzle complimented. "I guess you could say we're going to make _history_ in your _textbook_." Carlos joked. "Carlos." The class broke into laughter as they made the turn onto the road the school was on.

All around the world, phones were ringing. The kids on the other line were asking the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer was in the middle or roleplaying in the park reenacting the Spanish American War when Chip and Liz ran over with his buzzing phone. "Guys, not now! I'm in battle!" He hissed. The two forced it to his ear anyway and answered it for him. "Hello, magic School bus, producer speaking."

"I told you I'd call you again." The person on the other side of the line responded. The producer sighed irritated. It was the History teacher from when the Transcontinental Railroad episode aired. "You again? What do you want? I'm kinda busy." He hissed as he ducked behind a rock. "Don't give me that attitude. You left out some major points. There are so many holes in the story, it's frikkin' swiss cheese!" The teacher responded angrily. "Let me guess, you're going to complain about how we didn't mention the Treaty of Paris." he assumed. "Well, that was my third point, but yes! The Treaty of Paris is what actually set Cuba free from Spain, and it also let the U.S. own Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines for $20,000,000!" The history teacher corrected. "Right, and the Platt Amendment and Foraker Act was set by the U.S. to the Cubans. The Platt Amendment states that all of Cuba's treaties and trade agreements had to go through the United States." The producer agreed as he fired a couple of fake shots and diving behind his rock again. " _AND_ lets the U.S. take the naval base in Guantanamo Bay." The producer was astonished at his facts until he remembered this was a History teacher he was talking to. "Also, the U.S. managed to annex the Philippines, but the Filipinos fought back and broke away from the U.S. in 1946."

"Well, I'm sorry we couldn't fit all those facts in a half hour. Thanks for calling. Bye." He said as he chucked the phone at Chip and Liz. Suddenly, a shadow cast over his hiding spot. "Oh no." He whimpered.

 **Hey people! It's me! I'm sorry these History chapters aren't as amazing as the Science chapters, it's just I like Science more than History. I was thinking about dropping the History lessons altogether, but I didn't think it would be fair to you. I have about twenty-some chapter ideas left to write, and only four of them are History. :/ Yeah. Anyway, I'm rambling and what I wanted to let you know is the next chapter is going to get a little inappropriate, but it's not too bad. I just want the younger audiences to know. If you are underage, please do not read it, but if you do, that's not my problem. I warned you. It's about chromosomes and sex cells and ish. Anyway, bye!**


	16. The Magic School Bus Gets Coded

**DESCRIPTION: When Ralph's game stops working, the class takes a trip inside his game to figure out what's wrong with the coding. But something goes awry and it's up to Phoebe to save them. But can she put her feud with Jyoti to rest before it's too late?**

Ms. Frizzle still hadn't shown up for class yet, which was quite normal. The class was chatting as they usually did and Ralph was playing a video game when "Hey, Phoebe, whatcha got there?" Wanda asked, looking at the girl with the pamphlet in her hand. "Oh it's just-" Phoebe never finished as the door suddenly burst open. "Hey guys!" The familiar voice sang out. "Jyoti?" The kids cried in shock. The entire class, except for Ralph and Phoebe, embraced the girl. "Ralphie, what's wrong? I thought we were friends." Jyoti said. "We are, Jyoti, it's just that I'm so close to beating this level. And it's Ralph now." Jyoti nodded, understanding Ralph's love for video games. She then noticed the girl in the corner, standing awkwardly. "Oh my gosh, hi! Are you a new student here?" She said, shaking Phoebe's hand. "I'm Jyoti and I was with this group before you came here." She explained falsely. "Actually, I'm Phoebe." She said. Jyoti clasped her hands over her mouth. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! But it's great to meet you. I guess you were here before me then." She chuckled. "If you want to locate the new kid, you'll have to see me. Hi, I'm Harris." He introduced. "Jyoti. It's a pleasure to meet you, Harris." "Likewise." He responded."So, as I was saying, Wanda-" Phoebe was interrupted yet again by Wanda herself. "So, Jyoti, built any cool new contraptions?" Jyoti was ecstatic. "Accurate. I have been working mercilessly, you have no clue. This very class has inspired me even more. Check out my jacket!" She said. The entire class watched, mesmerized, except for Ralph who was still playing his game, and Phoebe who watched disappointedly and a little furiously.

"I programmed it so whenever I say the code word, frizzle-" The whirring of the jacket filled the room as the jacket turned into an enormous exoskeleton battle suit. "It turns into this!" She exclaimed with glee. "Wow! That's so cool, Jyoti!" Arnold said. "Incredible." "Awesome!" Phoebe watched in jealousy as all her friends admired this new girl. She was going to lose her mind if she didn't say anything. "So, Wanda, this pamphlet is actually about a group that travels the world every year to assist animals in need and I'm joining them this summer!" She said. "Pretty cool, huh?" She asked. "Yeah, it's awesome, Pheebs." Wanda responded with a twinge of monotone in her voice. "So, Jyoti, how did you get your jacket to do that?" She asked. Phoebe growled silently as Ralph suddenly cried out in frustration. "What's wrong, Ralphie-oops, I mean Ralph." Jyoti asked. "Well, it's just this stupid game! Whenever I get to the boss battle, this glitch comes out of nowhere and I can't play. I'm completely unable to move or punch or anything! I'm stuck and it's the last level of the game!" Jyoti pondered for a moment. "Puzzling. It sounds like a problem with the coding." She explained. "Coding? What's that?" Tim asked, looking up from his sketch of Jyoti's suit.

"Coding is exactly what makes up technology, Tim!" Ms. Frizzle's voice echoed. "Ms. Frizzle?" The class asked in unison. Ms. Frizzle's computer monitor flashed on and a blue and white pixelated Ms. Frizzle with a certain lizard perched on her shoulder exited the screen and landed on her table. She laughed as a blue ring similar to those in a certain ghost cartoon swarmed her body and transformed her back into a living Frizzle. Her dress was green and was designed with blue ones and zeroes going around her body and her earrings were ones and the design on her shoes were zeroes. "That always tickles, doesn't it, Liz?" She asked as the lizard hopped off of her shoulder and ran to Jyoti. "Ah, Jyoti. What a surprise. I thought you were living with your Naanii in England." Ms. Frizzle recalled. "Yeah, but I'm visiting my parents and I decided to stop by to see my favorite class! It's so good to see you, Professor." She returned the exoskeleton back into a jacket and hugged Ms. Frizzle. "Call me Ms. Frizzle. Professor sounds too professional. Now, Ralphie, plug me into your problem." She requested. "Okay, the problem is whenever I reach the final level, I can't do anything. My character is stuck!" Ms. Frizzle thought for a moment. "Interesting. It might be the programming." She said. "Aw, I was wrong. I thought it was the coding." Jyoti said, thinking on it. The skeleton in the corner placed a hand on her shoulder as if to console her.

"You're not wrong, Jyoti. Programming and coding are similar, but they're not exactly the same. I think the lesson plan can wait for a _bit_." She chuckled at her own joke. "To the bus! Two by two, please!" She ordered. "Liz, can you keep things at bay in the classroom while we're gone?" The Friz asked. Liz gave her a thumbs up and scampered over to the device. She jumped onto the table and held up the game to the window so they could easily get in when they got back inside the classroom. "I can always count on you, Liz." Arnold sighed. "And I can always count on the Frizzle family to spice up my life." The class exited the school and the bus doors flung open for them. "Hey, bus! How are you?" Jyoti asked. The bus' face lit up as soon as it saw Jyoti and it honked with glee at her. "I've missed you so much! We have so much to catch up on." It honked again and she ran back up the familiar steps and into a seat. Phoebe was watching from the window. The bus didn't greet her like that when she joined the class again this year. Phoebe sighed and buckled in per Ms. Frizzle's request at the front of the bus. "Bus, do your stuff!" She cried out as she pulled on the central lever. The bus honked and then hovered in the air for a brief moment before spinning around wildly. The whirlwind shrunk as the bus neared the window where Liz was waiting. It was swept into the video game console and stopped spinning. "Where are we?" Harris asked, staring out the window. "We're just inside Ralph's game software-it's where all the data is stored, including controller functions." Ms. Frizzle answered, throwing the bus in park. "What are we doing in here, when we should be _out there_ figuring out why my game keeps glitching?" Ralph asked with urgency in his voice. "Well, Ralph, to fix the outside, you've got to fix the inside, where the magic happens. Follow me." She declared, opening the bus doors and exiting the vehicle. The students followed, exploration suits zapping onto their bodies as they floated in the air. "Woah, I've missed this!" Jyoti said. "Not as much as we've missed you!" Wanda remarked. The class laughed, except for Phoebe. "So, what _are_ we doing in here Ms. Frizzle? Being in this game freaks me out. We're in such a confined space, and you know I have claustrophobia." Arnold said.

"Well, to fix Ralph's game, we have to fix the coding within the game!" She explained. "What is coding, Ms. Frizzle?" Keesha asked. "I can explain that. It's like programming a computer to do something! Codes are a set of instructions that tells an electronic device to do something depending on what's being asked. Coding is the wiring of codes." Jyoti explained proudly. "As sharp as ever, Jyoti." Ralph praised. Phoebe rolled her eyes and floated to the back of the group, as far away as she could from Jyoti. "So is there something wrong with the coding in my game that's causing it to glitch?" Ralph asked. "Dynamic deduction, Ralph! If even one slight mistake is found in a code, the entire thing goes haywire! That's why people who build the codes are very careful and precise on how they make their products and go over it multiple times to see anything that they missed." Ms. Frizzle answered.

"So, what do codes look like?" Wanda asked. "I think Liz can answer that. Oh, Liz? Liz, press a button!" Ms. Frizzle asked. The lizard heard her voice and followed her instructions, pressing a button multiple times. "Here comes a code now. Press the button on the side of your helmet, everyone!" They did so and their helmets began to glow the same colors as the codes going down the stretch. "Woah, the codes looked like spheres, but now they're numbers." Carlos pointed out. "According to my research, Carlos, codes are only two numbers, one and zero." D.A. pointed out. "Yes, and they act as a sort of on-off switch, one being on, and zero being off." Ms. Frizzle added. "But it doesn't seem like an on-off switch, Ms. Frizzle." Phoebe added. "Yeah, it looks like that they're in some sort of formation." Arnold said, eyeing one closely as it passed by. "Oh, I've heard of this!" Jyoti said. "A certain instruction has its own set of on and offs or ones and zeroes. When activated, the ones and zeroes set off as instructions to tell the device what to do. They make up the codes. That's what they look like in their natural state, but the device changes it so we see what we want to see." She explained. "Precisely!" Phoebe blew hair out of her eye and grunted. "Hey, it's sort of like morse code!" Wanda connected. "Yeah, you're right!" Ralph said. "There are long light flashes and short light flashes and they coordinate with the letters of the alphabet. But instead of being instructions, they're messages."

"I guess coding is like morse code." Tim said. "Well as my cousin, Cody Morrison, always said, '11100110, 1110001,00010010, 11000101.' He has such a way with words." Ms. Frizzle sighed dreamily. "So now that we know how coding works, let's hack our way in there!" Carlos urged. "Wait. What is a hacker anyway?" Tim asked. "According to my research, a hacker is someone who breaks into your software and messes with your coding. If not carefully taken out of the system, they can gain control of everything!"

"So could Ralph's game be messed up because of a hacker?" Arnold wondered aloud. "Could be, Arnold. But it's highly unlikely. Hackers can mainly hack devices like computers, laptops, tablets, and phones, but to hack a video game console like this one would mean someone who coded the game sabotaged it or got into the software when it was being created." Ms. Frizzle answered. "Well, what are we waiting for? I for one am not going to just float around in the software and do nothing! Come on, you weasley wimps!" She declared grabbing onto a code. Then her body shimmered and disappeared. "Um, is it just me, or did Wanda just _disappear_?" Ralph asked in the void.

-|o|=|=|o|-

"Oh bad, oh bad, oh bad, bad, bad." Keesha began. "Wanda just disappeared."

"What do we do?"

"I knew I should have stayed home today!"

"Class, there's no need for foreboding over coding. Wanda just hitched a ride with a code. If I'm correct, she just became a part of that code!" Ms. Frizzle assured gleefully. "Wait, Wan's a part of the final level? But that means that she's going to fight! If she doesn't win, the game will reset and all data will be erased, including Wanda!" Ralph cried. "And without properly working controls, she can't move." Phoebe said with a tremble in her voice. "And not being able to move, she can't win." D.A. added. "Amd everything will reset, including Wanda! She'll be gone forever!" Jyoti hysterically cried out. "It's okay, Jyoti. We'll find her." Carlos assured. "We'll get her back."

The class surrounded Jyoti and Phoebe became enraged but said nothing. The bus noticed this and honked at her. She floated over to it and sat on the hood. "Thanks, bus. At least _someone_ still cares about me." She sighed before she heard screams. Keesha had accidentally touched a code and was starting to shimmer away. The entire class and the bus was trying to save her, including Ms. Frizzle. Wanda joined on the tug but they all shimmered away except for Phoebe who jumped off at the last minute. She grunted as she hit the wall of the console. She caught herself and was alone in the void. "Hello? Anybody?" She asked with little hope. "Phoebe?" Jyoti asked. Or so she thought. "Jyoti…" Phoebe said. ebe groaned. "Phoebe! It is you! Calming!" She embraced the brunette with such force, Phoebe wanted to vomit. "We have to save our friends!" Jyoti concluded. "My friends." Phoebe said. "What?" Phoebe turned on her. "You know what I mean! I didn't want to go back to my old school, but my dad made me! And then you swooped in and took my place! Everyone kept texting and emailing me about how much fun you were and all about how you create your inventions! I finally got my dad to let me come here full time and everyone gives me a wave. But you show up for a day and you're instantly the best person on the planet. Even _the bus_ likes you more than me!" Phoebe yelled out. She faced away from Jyoti. "If you want to replace me, go ahead. You're better than me anyway. I could never make those inventions. I'm just a dumb animal loving hippie." She said.

Jyoti almost didn't say anything. But the emotion took control of her. "You're wrong, Phoebe. Do you know how much they talked about you? All while I was there, all they could talk about was 'Phoebe would say this' or 'Phoebe would love that' or 'Phoebe would save that.' I felt so welcomed but yet so compared. You're ultimately the original eighth student of Ms. Frizzle's class and I was just a fill in. I could never create S.A.D.S. I'd probably make some sort of contraption that would end up messing up the desert. I wouldn't have the determination and heart to keep going with Carlos' negativity. You have something I don't. I strived to meet the expectation you left for me. And I failed. But it's because we're so different that makes us perfect for this class. I'm sorry if you feel like I imposed on you. You're truly amazing, Phoebe. I just thought you knew that already." Jyoti said, hugging her from behind. Phoebe sniffled. "You really think that?" She asked. "I know that." Jyoti answered. "And everything I know is 100% correct." She added jokingly. Phoebe chuckled. "Okay, I'm sorry." Phoebe said. "I thought you were going to replace me again. "Of course I wouldn't. You're Phoebe. You're the original!"

"Hehe...original. Anyway, we have to save our friends. So why is Ralph's game so messed up?" Jyoti turned serious. "As we already established, there's a glitch in the coding." Phoebe paused her. "See, I'm no tech wiz. What is a glitch?" She asked. "A glitch is a little oopsie that gets into the coding that can mess things up. It's like a malfunction in the software." Jyoti said. "Of course! If there's a malfunction in the software, then there has to be an incorrect statement in the code. So the game is only doing what it's being asked to do! I bet that it has something to do with the ones and zeroes!" Phoebe concluded.

"Of course, that's brilliant! Good job, Phoebe! There must be something wrong with the coding. You see, when game developers make a game, they type in words and symbols that technology transfers into the morse codes of ones and zeroes, something the game can understand! It has to be something in the programming, not the instructions! I bet I could edit it from my Friz Tab!" Jyoti said. "But they're in the bus which got digitized into the game!" Phoebe reasoned. "I hooked it up to my watch and it never leaves my side."She began to edit the software. "Once we fix the problem, we still need to beat the boss." Phoebe said, before thinking for a moment. "And I know just how to do it." She began to tell her friend her plan. "Conniving. It'll work, but I can't guarantee it'll work." Phoebe gave a thumbs up.

-|o|=|=|o|-

"This is terrible! Look at the health bar!" Ralph cried from behind his character. Above the stiff character's head was a bar that was nearing completely grey and the only other color was dark red. "We're so getting deleted." Carlos said. "Don't be so robotic, kids. I'm sure Phoebe and Jyoti are going to save us." Liz was watching the entire interaction from the screen and seemed unfazed when Ms. Frizzle winked at her. She winked back and watched as a digitized Phoebe and Jyoti joined the group in a shimmering blue light. "We fixed your game, Ralph! The glitch is gone!" Jyoti gleefully told him. "We also added a little something extra." Phoebe added with a sly grin. "You all remember the password to my exoskeleton, don't you?" Jyoti asked. "Frizzle!" Everyone shouted simultaneously. Suddenly, Ralph's character grew Jyoti's exoskeleton and became indestructible and its health bar went completely green. "Yeah!" The class cheered. "Get 'em, Liz!" Wanda cried. "Show 'em who's boss!" Keesha added. "Do it for us!" Ralph cried out. The lizard on the other side of the screen grew a face of determination and began to fight. The character moved and began to take on the antagonist. But with a healable exosuit that's indestructible, heat resistant, cold resistant, strain resistant, and a whole bunch of other features, the antagonist couldn't stand a chance and was defeated. The victory screen began to play and the class became digitized again, including Jyoti's exoskeleton. They exited the video game and reformed outside as if they had been there all day. The doors swung open and the class piled out, followed by Jyoti in the exoskeleton. "Hooray Jyoti! Hooray Phoebe!" Keesha cheered and the rest of the class added. "That's one _bone_ -a-fide awesome exoskeleton you got there, Jyoti." Carlos joked. "CARLOS." The class laughed. "Yes. Yes it is." Phoebe said. "As I always say, you're on the right road if you have the right code." Ms. Frizzle said from the bus' driver's seat.

All around the world, phones were ringing. The kids on the other end of the line were asking the same question:

"Is this the Magic School Bus?"

The producer sat in his new coding class, taking notes diligently when Chip opened the door and scampered in, followed by Liz. "You guys, I'm kind of busy here! I don't have time for your shenanigans!" He scolded. They held up his buzzing phone. "Of course, right in the middle of class." He sighed and picked up. "Magic School Bus, producer speaking." He answered. "Hi, I just watched your show on coding and I have a question." The kid said. "I might have an answer." The producer chuckled to himself. "I heard there are multiple ways of coding. Is that true?" The kid asked. "It is. In fact, there are five." He answered looking at the notes on the board. "Assembly coding, procedural coding, object-oriented coding, declarative coding, and functional coding. Each one with a specific job based on what your software is. Thanks for calling." He said, hanging up. He continued jotting down notes for a split second and then got another phone call. "Magic School Bus, producer speaking." He sighed. "Is that how you're going to answer your mother?" She asked. "Mom?" She tsked. "Listen, I'll let the introduction slide, but not your show on coding. It's just not informational enough." She said, disappointment stinging her voice. "What do you mean, Mom?"

"Well, you never explained programming language! You mentioned it, but you never went into detail about how they make up the ones and zeroes. Such as 'print Hello World' for an example. And you also didn't go over Low Level and High Level languages."

"Oh, but we do know that one. Low Level languages are closer to binary code a computer understands, which is way more difficult for humans. But High Level are way easier for us to understand since it's not as complex and are designed for us to write." He explained. "Ah, you do do your research before airing an episode." She said with satisfaction. "Yes, Mama, now please, I have to get back to-" The teacher hovered over him. "Phone." He ordered. "Mama, I'm in trouble with my teacher." The producer whispered as Chip and Liz ducked behind his back. "Give him the phone. I'll teach him _my_ code!" She said threateningly. The producer gulped. "Oh boy."

 **I'm a little irritated with MSB Rides Again because I was planning on writing a chapter on the internet and they got to it before me. Plus, I wrote a chapter on DNA and then all of a sudden, guess who's up inside Janet's DNA structure? But it's not gonna matter any time soon because with the way Season 2 ended, I think the show's over. Sadness...**


End file.
